Just Call My Name
by StormAria
Summary: Princess and I had known each other for a long time. We were close, just like sisters, but I had always maintained a good distance between us. We enrolled to Ouran out of desperation. Many parties wanted to get rid of her for the throne. Her relatives seek to diminish her presence. So, her protection fell unto my shoulders; Ouran was a dangerous place. Dangerous with them.
1. First Day in Ouran

**HELLO, READERS! I started this story on a whim, I guess. Nothing much to say about it. Still technically new to this and I don't have a Beta Reader to check for errors and the likes. So, my apologies for my future mistakes in advance!**

**Enjoy~!**

* * *

Layla's POV

"Look, it's the new kids,"

"I heard they were accepted into Ouran because of the guy's rich aunt and their almost perfect grades,"

"Is his aunt really that rich?"

"How can you call that rich?"

"But his family can't be rich,"

"What of the girl?"

"Charity case most likely,"

"Just look how she's dressed!"

"She doesn't look like she has the brains for Ouran,"

"But the guy's kind of cute,"

"Yeah, in a nerdy way,"

Giggles were heard all around. Walking into Ouran High School for the first time was the start of a bad term. I looked at Princess Haruhi's back, standing tall without a care in the world. She was carrying her school books by herself for the first time, wearing a ridiculously big sweater shirt, baggy pants and bulky glasses. She had to disguise herself as a nerdy teenage boy with a rich aunt that adored him. In reality, she was Japan's Royal Princess. She would have to fend for herself, but of course, with me by her side. Yet she was not the type to need anyone's help; she could easily manage on her own.

And then, there was me. A skirt wearing, knee-high socks cutter, childhood best friend of 'Haruhi Fujioka' (who was a male commoner) and going to Ouran on a friend's aunt scholarship. That just meant that I was a 'charity case' for Princess Haruhi as said by the voice drowned by many. I was not really a cutter though; I just had to play that role because of the scars and scars-to-be all over my body. Easiest way to hide them was painfully in plain sight. Not that I would enjoy being called a suicidal cutter. It was something someone did not think through about. And happened to be something I had to get over as long as I wanted to protect Princess from anything.

And just then, Princess ran into someone.

"Watch it, commoner!" A girl in one of the stuffy yellow balloon of a school uniform growled.

"Ah, I'm so sorry!" Princess Haruhi pleaded in her most informal speech yet.

Getting down on the floor to pick Princess's stuff, I saw with the corner of my eyes that the girl was going gaga over Princess's soft currently short hair. I glared at her, quickly picking the books off the floor with ease. She was one of the thousand voices that called Princess Haruhi a 'cute nerdy guy'.

"Did you do that on purpose?" I asked coldly.

I could practically see the shiver running down her spine.

"O-Of course not!" she stuttered, lying through her teeth.

She was mad that I said that to her. I could tell. I could easily read girls like her. They were all made from the same thin silicon Barbie doll. Barbie dolls that were so desperate for a cute or handsome boy to toy with. Their types differing to their preference. I wanted to gag. I would have gag if I had less self-control.

"It's alright, Layla. No harm, no foul," Princess reminded me, even calling me by my fake name.

When the girl thought Princess was not looking, she gave me a smirk. Her expression looked like she was saying 'He is going to be mine'. It was ridiculous! I felt like wiping the floor with her face but I obviously could not do that without making a scene. I noticed two boys staring intently at us. Princess and I had already had enough attention as it was. Princess dragged me away from the foolery after she said a few kind words to the girls. It disgusted me but it was what Princess had to do to keep appearance.

"We need to get our schedules!" she said happily.

How they did not realise that 'Haruhi Fujioka' was actually a girl was beyond me.

* * *

I held both of our schedules side by side. We were, thank God, in the same class and taking the same subjects. That was enough to bring my spirits up. It would be a much easier task to take care of the Princess. Class 2-A was printed neatly on our schedules. It must have been the top class of the grade since Princess and I were technically straight 'A' students. But she was so much smarter than me, obviously, since she learned History and Etiquette while I learned sword-wielding and survival skills. But I still had the knowledge needed to ace my exams because Princess did not want to have to learn all of them on her own.

In class, we were introduced as 'Mr. Haruhi Fujioka' and 'Miss Layla Fujikawa'.

"Hey, it's the kids from the hallway!" a ginger said.

"What kids? Are you daydreaming again?" asked another ginger.

Two gingers in one class, what were the odds of that happening in Japan? I glanced toward Princess Haruhi and saw her smiling kindly at the two boys but they were not paying any attention to us anymore. Oh, no. They were too preoccupied with each other.

"B-but you made me sound like an idiot. A-am I an idiot to you?"

"No, no! Of course not! You're the smartest, the cutest, the funniest and the only one for me!" said the other boy passionately, hugging the other tightly.

They stared deeply into each other's eyes. Closer and closer. Clinging tightly to one another.

"Hikaru…"

"Kaoru…"

"Hikaru…"

"Kaoru…"

"Hika…"

"Kao…"

They looked like mirror images of each other. And then it hit me. _Twins… this must be the thing people called brother conflict. _The situation was getting uncomfortable, for me at least, so I decided to break it up.

"Teacher, can we get on with the class," once I uttered those words, only then did I realise that the teacher herself was looking like she was hyperventilating out of anticipation. Hearts were in almost every girl's eyes.

Sighing loudly at the unprofessionalism displayed by only the first ten minutes of class, I could already tell that our stay in Ouran would not be productive educational-wise. Not too sure about extra co-curricular wise. I heard they had archery, kendo and taekwondo. All that I was good at, all that I wanted to join.

"Haruhi, I'm sorry, the sch-," I started to say but one look from her told me that the Princess did not really mind if the school was a waste of time, space or energy.

Hell, whatever made my Princess happy made me somewhat happy. And I would not be the one to steal that away from her. Not after all we had gone through. Hopefully, the nightmares were over once and for all with us having to turn over this new and unforgiving leaf.

* * *

**So, what do you think? I'm not quite sure where I'm going with this but I pretty much have the gist of it.**

**So, hopefully it'll turn out alright~!**

**Reviews are welcome with open arms!**


	2. Pre-schooler of The Arts

**I AM SO SORRY! I completely forgotten about this fanfic. But even after 4 months, I can recall the storyline I was going with so I decided to continue it. This time I won't forget this story! Promise!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC!**

* * *

Layla's POV

"Sorry, Princess. I have an audience with Chairman Suoh," I told Princess cheekily.

We had been in Ouran for a month now. I could feel myself loosen up a bit. Even though I faced many gossips and sidelong glares from the students, our stay here had been uneventful - protection wise. I did not mind the treatment, as long as Princess was not a victim of it.

Princess stopped walking and gave me a funny expression. Yeah, 'Layla Fujikawa', Ouran's very own suicidal cutter was called for an audience with THE Chairman Suoh. What a surprise.

"But, why?" Princess asked with furrowed eyebrows.

I simply shrugged. Even I did not know why I was called. Whatever it was, it seemed really important.

"Hmm... I'll wait for you at the library then. I need to study a bit so we can walk home together!" Princess smiled widely as we walked the empty halls of Ouran.

"Yeah, alright. I'll come and get you later," I waved at her as I walked the other way.

"Freya! Don't forget, ok?!" I heard Princess call as I was about to turn the corner.

I gave her the 'ok' sign and headed off. That was my real name - Freya Fujikawa. Princess had always called me by that name ever since we met eight years ago, when she was seven and I was eight.

I had lied about my age to get in the same grade as Princess so that taking care of her would be easier. General Fujikawa or Ranka Fujioka, my father, had agree to it. Ranka was posing as Princess's dad. And I was Princess'a childhood friend. Our cover was pretty simple to act. We were not even acting, just being ourselves.

I was now standing infront of Chairman Suoh's office. Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door.

"Enter,"

* * *

Haruhi's POV

"I think I'm lost," I muttered to myself.

Ouran might be a bit smaller than the palace but it was still confusing. Looking left, then right and at the map in my hands, I found myself infront of a grand staircase. Is the library by any chance up here?

I headed up stairs and turned right. Taking a few twist and turns later, I came to a room with a sign that said 'Music Room 3'. 'How many music rooms does a school need?' Even the palace had only one music room.

"Why do I always get lost?!" I surpressed a yell as I looked around frustrated.

Giving up on the library, I pushed open the door to the music room, hoping beyond hope that it was empty so I could study. It was not.

Red flower petals flowed slowly toward me. A sweet fragrance waffled the air.

"Welcome to the Host Club!"

"Eh? It's a guy!"

Huh...?

* * *

Layla's POV

"Take a seat, Miss Fujikawa," Chairman Suoh said.

Hesitating a bit, I sat in one of the plush couches infront of his desk. I looked around the office with a careful eye. It was spaceous to say the least.

"Would you like some tea, Miss Fujikawa?" Chairman Suoh asked with a smile plastered to his face.

"I would like to get this over with as soon as possible, Chairman Suoh sir, so if you don't mind. Could you cut to the chase?" I said, giving him a expressionless face.

"Cut to the chase? Well, if you want it that way," Chairman Suoh obliged, "Your cutting habits are single-handedly destroying this prestige school's name. As well as, destroying Mr. Fujioka's future as he likes to be around you."

Well, this was the least I expected to be discussing with him. Me? Ruining Princess's future?

But I could understand his point of view, not that it was the real situation. And that was something I could not tell him either, so, instead I told him this.

"I don't think it's much of a problem, sir," I said, "As long as my grades are outstanding and my co-curricular activities are maintained, my 'cutting habits' as you call them, should not pose as a problem."

"Besides, the other highschools should not know any of this as it is a matter of Ouran's student and not theirs. So, I believe that the 'problem' only lies with you, sir, am I correct?"

Chairman Suoh's expression was hard to read.

"Yes, that much is true. Fine, let's make a deal, shall we?" he said, "You maintain the excellent results, I won't mess with you. But if you can't, then you must get away from Mr. Fujioka. He has a bright future here and I don't want you jeopardising it."

I was jeopardising Princess's future? I wanted to scoff but I controlled myself.

"Deal,"

* * *

I closed the door of Chairman Suoh's office. Sigh, what an annoying nuisance. Well, whatever. It was time to head back to Princess.

I walked along the corridors. All the walls had plenty of windows. Evening light streamed in, bathing the walls orange.

Suddenly, I heard a rustling noise. I quickly looked for the source of the sound. Ah, there! The bushes outside the window next to me was moving suspiciously.

Covering half of my face with the black cloth that I always carried with me, I jumped out the window. A startled guy in ninja clothing jumped back.

"How did you know I was there? You're the princess, aren't you?" the guy requested.

Obviously, I was not! The Princess covering her face with a black cloth? Was he new in this line of work? But his gullibility was to my advantage. I was not complaining.

"What if I am?" I tested the waters.

"Then, I have been commanded to get rid of you!" he said, recklessly charging at me.

He was too reckless. I easily subdued him with a twist of a wrist.

"What are you? A pre-schooler?" I asked, irritated as he struggled to get out of my grasps.

I removed a dagger from my thigh hoster and pointed it to his throat. Even with his lame moves, he was still a threat.

"Who ordered you to kill me?" I demanded.

He kept quiet. He then struggled under me, my dagger ate into his skin. I heard the muffled screams he tried to surpress.

"It's going to hurt a lot more if you resist," I told him matter-a-factly, "Maybe I should just kill you here?"

My vision was blurry. All I could see was red. I could feel the blood pumping through his veins. How easy it would be to drive my dagger into his soft throat.

I pulled back to ready my dagger and drove it down, hard. Onto my own left arm. I exhaled, relief. I was suppose to spare as many attackers as I could. But that was near impossible to do unless I hurt myself. Thus, the many many scars I had.

"It's your lucky day, wannabe ninja assassin," I said before knocking him out with the hilt of my dagger after I pulled it out of my own skin.

I took out a white cloth from my bag and wrapped it with the right pressure around the wound. Taking out some rope, I tied the guy's hands tightly behind his back. Once I was done, I whipped out my cellphone and dialed a number.

"Freya,"

"General, I caught one. Ouran High, near the field."

"Two minutes,"

I shut the phone and stared at the knocked out idiot. Could anyone be any more gullible? Cradling my arm close to me, I waited.

* * *

Still cradling my arm, I stepped into the library. There were only two people present. One was the princess. The other was an Ouran student, his ears stuffed with heavy metal music and a comic book in his hands. How did I know that? I could hear it blaring from where I stood. He must be a substitute librarian.

Just then, Princess saw me. She closed her books and hurriedly came towards me when she noticed the now red cloth wrapping my arm. I noticed her eyes widen. How could anyone think I was her?

"It's ok. I did it to myself," I told her, smiling softly.

"You should have been more careful, Freya!" she stage whispered.

It was all for show, obviously. We both knew the guy was deaf to the world.

Princess looked over at the reddening cloth with furrowed eyebrows. I shrugged at her.

"Come on, let's go. We need to stop by the grocery store to get ingredients for dinner, buy more bandage cloth and antiseptic medicine," I ushered Princess out of the library.

We walked to the grocery store. I stayed outside while Princess shopped for our stuff. I doubt that the manager would be pleased with a pool of blood on his clean white tiled floor.

"Hey, isn't that..." someone started.

"... the skirt girl," someone continued.

"From our class?" they finished together.

Oh no. It was THEM.

* * *

**Well, that's done! What do you think? Was it ok?**

**Please give me your feedback so I can improve!**

**I don't have a beta so I apologise for any mistakes and errors.**

**R&amp;R please and thank you!**

**Love,**

**~StormAria~**


	3. Why Are You Angry?

**Well, I think this is going slowly. I haven't quite gotten accustom to writting chapter stories yet. But I hope you like ths chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC. Wish I did though.**

* * *

Layla's POV

"And what are you two doing here?" I tucked my arm closer to my body.

What would happen if they saw it? Were more rumours going to spread? This was going to be an even bigger problem if Chairman Suoh were to find out.

"We were just riding our limo home when we saw you standing alone," one of the twins replied me.

"Why are you even telling her that?" the other twin said.

They really were identical. Which one was Hikaru and which one was Kaoru?

"... Which one are you again?" I asked the twin with the huskier voice.

They both looked at each other and chuckled.

"Who knows? I could be Kaoru. Or, I could be Hikaru," the husky one said.

"Or, I could be Hikaru. But I might be Kaoru," the one with the higher pitch said.

"Do you know who is who?" they chorused.

"No, and I don't think I care anymore," I sighed, averting my eyes.

"Aww, you are..." husky said.

"... no fun," high pitched finished.

"Anyways, your boyfriend is indebt with the Host Club. Did you know that?" they both said.

"My... Boyfriend?" I asked, confusion written on my face.

"Yeah, Haruhi Fujioka's your boyfriend, right? You guys are always together," one of them said.

"And it was a debt of eighty thousand dollars for breaking a vase," the husky chuckled, "How clumsy was he!"

"Don't worry though, he's paying the debt by being the Host Club's man servant," the nicer one tried saying in the nicest way possible.

"You guys are making him wait on your hands and knees?!" I yelled at them, straightening my arms to the side.

Ou-Ouch! The pain from my knife injury stung. I quickly pulled my arm back.

"H-hey, girly! You ok there?" the husky one asked.

"Hikaru, she looks like she's hurt!" the nice one said, worried.

Blood tinkle slowly down my arm. It stung a lot. Princess, hurry up! What was taking her so long?

* * *

Hikaru's POV

Kaoru and I froze in shock. What do you do when someone who's a cutter is hunched over an arm wound? And her blood was even dripping on the floor. But more importantly, why did I feel so angry?

Just then, Haruhi stepped out of the store. He dropped the bags he held onto the ground.

"L-Layla?! What happened?" Haruhi exclaimed, running to support her.

"I-it's nothing. Are you done?" Fujikawa said, clunching her left arm, "S-shall we go?"

"B-but you're bleeding again!" Haruhi had worried written all over his face.

That made me even more pissed off.

"Take her home already, Haruhi!" I yelled at him, heading back towards our limosine, "You're not helping her any if you just fret over her!"

"H-Hikaru! Wait! Shouldn't we help them?" Kaoru pulled my arm.

"Hikaru..." I heard Haruhi whisper.

My jaws tightened in irritation. I was sure Fujikawa had a pained expression at that moment but I could not stop myself.

"Stay if you want, Kaoru. I'm going home, with or without you," I shrugged him off harshly.

"Ah, don't leave me, Hikaru!" Kaoru hurried to catch up to me, worry was still plastered on his face, "Haruhi! Fujikawa! I'm sorry but we have to go! Take care of Fujikawa, Haruhi!"

When we were both back in the limo, Kaoru pounced on me.

"What was that, Hikaru?! Fujikawa was in real pain and all you did was walk away?" Kaoru shouted.

"Just be quiet, Kaoru. You don't understand," I looked anywhere but at him.

How could he understand? Even I did not understand what I was feeling. What was this anger? What was I angry about?

"At least I cared enough to worry about her," Kaoru got off of me pouting as he crossed his arms.

We both sat in silence the whole ride back to our mansion. I could not care less. I had my own feelings to sort out.

She was bleeding. But she was a cutter anyways, it should not bother me. But... Was that it? Was I angry because she was hurt? Or, was it because she most likely hurt herself?

Realisation hit me like a truck. I was angry that she was hurt. But I got even angrier thinking she did that to herself. But I was furious when Haruhi touched her.

What were these feelings?

* * *

Haruhi's POV

"Are you ok now, Freya?" I asked her as she sewn her wound.

Freya lifted her arm to inspect her handy work. The stitches looked perfect. She wore a small smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine. See? It doesn't even hurt anymore!" She grinned cheekily at me.

I let out a relieved sigh. Thank goodness. What would I do if she kept bleeding? I shivered at the thought. But I did not have to worry at all. Freya had always been strong.

"More importantly, Princess. What did they mean when they said that you were indebt?" Freya raised one of her eyebrows.

Oh, no. Caught by the cop. Man, why could Hikaru and Kaoru not shut their mouth about this? It only happened today!

"Well, it's how it sounds. I'm indebt with the Host Club," I said nonchalantly, "It's not a big deal. After I've paid them off, I'll leave the club. Besides, I don't think it's going to affect my study time much."

"But, isn't it dangerous?" Freya asked.

"Not at all," I confidently told her.

She thought it through. Just then, 'dad' came back home.

"General, welcome back," Freya greeted.

"Welcome back, 'dad'," I said with a wink to the general.

"Yeah, hey, you two... That guy you caught earlier was really foolish," General Fujikawa said while scratching his head, "A complete newbie."

"I thought so," Freya chimed.

"You had to stab yourself again. You should really try to control that urge of yours," General reprimanded Freya.

"Yes, sir," Freya replied, "A more important matter though, 'Fujioka'. Your daughter caught herself in debt."

I glared at Freya. She did not have to tell Fujikawa!

"I can handle it, thank you very much!" I told them, "I'll be perfectly safe while I'm there."

"There? Where's there?" General interogated me.

Shoot, I ran my mouth. Glancing at Freya for help, I realised she was smirking. Well, no help from her then.

"It's a Host Club. I'll be their servant until my debt is paid," I said, defeated.

"And how much do you own them?" he lifted an eyebrow.

"Eighty thousand dollars..." I trailed.

"EIGHTY THOUSAND DOLLARS?"

Yup, I really wished I could acknowledge my princess status right about now.

* * *

The next day...

Layla's POV

I walked besides Princess to our classroom. The halls were noisy with chatter. That was, until they saw us. The large bandage on my left arm was impossible to conceal.

"That's a huge bandage,"

"She did it to herself most likely,"

"Wonder how deep it is?"

"That takes guts... Or, stupidity,"

"Think she'll last the school year?"

"Not at this rate,"

"Poor Haruhi, though,"

"Does she not realised it hurts him too?"

I could hear the whispers as though they were spoken directly to me. They were not entirely wrong either. Did I do it to myself? Yes. Was it hurting Princess? Yes. Did I know? Yes.

I clenched my fists. Keep it together, Freya. Keep it together. Princess is right beside you, do not lose it!

Suddenly, I felt a warm hand on my shoulder. Turning around, it was one of the twins. From his expression, it was the nice one.

"Are you ok now?" he asked looking concerned.

"Kaoru," Princess said, "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I thought we could walk to class together. That's all," Kaoru (as Princess identified) said nonchalantly, grinning the whole time.

"Kaoru! Why did you suddenly sprint through the hall?" the husky twin barged in.

I noticed his eyes widen when he spotted me beside his brother. His surprise quickly turned into a scowl. What? What did I do?

Hikaru silently grabbed Kaoru's hand and walked straight to our class. Kaoru looked back at us with an apologetic face.

"If you need anything, just call me!" Kaoru said as he continued to be dragged by his brother.

What was that about? Shaking my head to get the situation out of my head, I ignored the oncoming murmurs.

"Let's go, Haruhi,"

* * *

It was the end of the school day. But we were not going home anytime soon. Princess still had 'club activities' and I came along to protect her.

Pushing the door to Music Room 3, we were face to face with six guys. The Hitachiin twins, a blonde, a raven, a very tall man and a boy with a stuff bunny.

... Usa-chan.

"Taka-kun and Mitsu-kun..." I murmured under my breath so no one heard me.

It was Morinozuka-senpai and Haninozuka-senpai now, I corrected myself.

They did not remember me, right...?

* * *

**So? So? What do you think? How does Layla/Freya know Mori and Honey?**

**Or, Usa-chan for that matter.**

**Do you know?!**

**R&amp;R please! Reviews are very much appreciated.**

**No beta, sorry for any mistakes and errors!**

**Love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	4. Meeting The Host Club

**Hey, readers! I'm really happy that you guys are taking the time to read this fanfic! I really hope you like this story and also this chapter! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Me? owning OHSHC? Nah~!**

* * *

Honey's POV

Haruhi was here! Oh, and he brought someone with him! She had long black hair. Her bangs were covering her eyes as they looked around curiously. She was tall and she was not wearing a uniform, just like Haruhi himself.

"Haruhi!"I launched myself to him, "Usa-chan missed you!"

"Honey-senpai," He greeted me with an awkward smile, looking at Usa-chan, "So, her name's Usa-chan?"

"Usa-chan..." Haruhi's friend said.

Her voice sounded familiar. Like a voice I had not heard in years. I looked at her again, noticing how she was staring at Usa-chan with interest. Do I know her?

"Hi, there! My name's Mitsukuni Haninozuka! But everyone calls me Honey," I grinned up at her and pointed at Usa-chan in Haruhi's arms, "This here is Usa-chan. She's my precious treasure!"

Haruhi held Usa-chan with a smile as the girl pulled off a small smile of her own. I just realised something though. Was Haruhi... by any chance... a girl?

"Layla, look! Isn't Usa-chan cute?" Haruhi grinned.

Yup, Haruhi was definitely a girl. So, Haruhi's friend name was Layla? ... It did not suit her at all. But I was not one to judge base on names.

"Pardon our rudeness, miss. We haven't introduce ourselves yet," Tamaki said bowing his head a little to Layla-chan.

"We, as you know, are the Hitachiin twins," Kaoru said gesturing to both Hikaru and himself.

Hikaru scoffed and averted his eyes from her. I wonder what was wrong with Hikaru. Did he not like Layla-chan?

"I'm Kaoru and this is my older brother, Hikaru," Kaoru continued, ignoring his brother's weird behaviour.

"Like I said just now, I'm Honey and this is my cousin Takashi Morinozuka! Everyone calls him Mori," Taka-chan nodded in agreement.

Layla-chan nodded back, biting her lips.

"I am Kyoya Ootori, the secretary of the Host Club," Kyoya followed up with the introductions.

"And I, beautiful princess... Am Tamaki Suoh. The King of the Host Club," Tamaki kneeled infront of Layla-chan grabbing her left hand and kissed her knuckle.

Layla-chan quickly pulled her hand out of Tamaki's reach. She winced a little and only then did all of us realise she had a humongous bandage on her left arm.

It looked like it really hurts. Suddenly I could hear Hikaru groaning softly. What was up with him?

"Please don't touch me," Layla-chan hastily told Tamaki off, "I'm only here to make sure Haruhi's alright."

Tamaki froze from her cold expression. He comically went to his depression corner and sulked.

"Hey, if that's all you're here for, you should leave," Hikaru spoke for the first time, glaring at her.

Layla-chan looked at him with a cold hard expression. It was like fire and ice.

"I don't trust you," she told him smoothly.

"Like wise, sweetheart," Hikaru taunted back.

"Interesting," Kyoya mumbled as he wrote something on his memo pad.

I looked at them confused. Taka-chan and I looked at each other. Does... Hikaru hate her? Or, was it something else?

"A-ah, well! This is my friend, Layla Fujikawa," Haruhi stuttered, helping with Layla-chan's introduction.

"Hello, Fujikawa-san. Sorry for the slight interruption though. It's time to greet the ladies," Kyoya butted in, "Please do not get in the way with Haruhi's duties while we entertain the guests."

Layla-chan inclined her head and headed to the window. She sat herself on the windowsill, looking out to the garden.

Tamaki quickly recovered after hearing what Kyoya said. It made him happy to entertain the girls.

Hikaru grunted, in a bad mood while Kaoru talked to him. I shrugged and took Usa-chan back into my arms. If I lost her, I did not know what I would do. It would be like losing _her_ again.

The double doors pushed out and the ladies streamed in.

"Welcome to the Host Club," we greeted them with a smile.

* * *

Layla's POV

The host members were all attending at least six girls at a time. Could those girls not see that they were not the hosts' priority? How desperate could one person get? Let alone an entire flock!

I sighed while looking out the window. A few girls glanced at me and gave me identical scowls. Their expression were plainly stating that I was not welcomed there.

I absentmindedly traced the new scar forming under my bandage. That was scar number thirty. Then, I popped my earphones on and tried to ignore all the burning glares directed towards me while still keeping an eye on Princess. She was heading my way in all her gigantic sweater glory.

"Layla, I have to go to the convenience store to buy some coffee," Princess said.

"I'm coming with you," I immediately got up from my place.

"No, I'll be fine. It's not even that far," she insisted.

"But, Haruhi... I really should go with you,"

"No, Layla. You don't. Just wait here and I'll be back before you know it!" She said enthusiastily.

I sighed and nodded.

"I'll be back!"

Kyoya was looking at our exchange the whole time. I saw him jot something down before he walked towards me.

"Good evening, Fujikawa-san," he started, "You and Haruhi seem to have a good relationship. That was the first time in two hours did you smile."

I carefully assessed Kyoya as he did the same to me.

"Do tell me, Fujikawa-san. Haruhi is a girl, isn't she?" Kyoya asked, pulling out a Pineapple laptop and started typing.

He knew Princess's gender but I could not say that I was surprised. I bet half of the Host Club knew by now. And I was sure Kyoya had already found the reason why she was like that.

Even with all of that, I did not see them as much of a threat, especially when I found out that Morinozuka-senpai and Haninozuka-senpai were in this club.

"Yes, she is," I said nonchalantly.

"Do tell me, why she is dress like a boy?" Kyoya requested.

"I think you already know the answer to that question, Ootori-san," I looked at his face.

"Yes, I do know," He said while nodding, "But who would have thought that the princess was hiding in Ouran."

"That was exactly the point," I pointed out to him.

"So, I assume you are her bodyguard?"

"I am not obliged to answer that. But... I'm sure you know," I raised an eyebrow.

"True," he simply said while writing more stuff into his memo pad.

I walked away from him. I needed to head to where Princess was. The exchange with Kyoya took less than five minutes. That was more than enough alone time for Princess. Besides, _the_ anniversary was coming up; she would have the whole day to herself.

"I find you truly interesting, Fujikawa-san or whatever your name is," Kyoya sighed, "But I wonder how you had gotten under Hikaru's skin. That had truly peaked at my curiosity. More so than finding out your relationship with Haruhi. If it hadn't, I promise you, you wouldn't be in this room."

"Understood," I told him without turning back.

Confusion was written on my face. I had gotten under Hikaru's skin? I hardly talked to the guy, how was that even possible? Shaking my head, I pushed the thought back into my subconscious.

When I finally reached the convenience store, I saw Princess absentmindedly standing in front of it. And she said she would be back before I knew it? Sighing, I waved my hand infront of her face.

* * *

Haruhi's POV

"Earth to Haruhi," a voice pulled me out of my daydream.

Looking left and right, I realised it was Freya. What was she doing here?

"What are you doing here, Layla? I told you I could take care of myself," I asked her, blinking in confusion.

"Well, by the way you were spacing out here proved that I made a good decision to come and get you," Freya said smugly.

"But, I'm fine, are-,"

I was cut off with a shoved from Freya. Falling on my butt, I heard a distinctive sound of a pot breaking.

"Tsk," I heard Freya say, "Great, something I can't hide again."

"W-what's wrong, Layla?" I asked Freya as she gently placed a hand to her cheek.

Blood fell through her fingers. A shard from the broken pot had struck her face. Her cheek was bleeding.

"That stupid pot fell from its shelf. It's not deep, Haruhi," She told me, "Come on, let's get back to school."

We were silent the whole walk back. Freya kept her hand to her cheek, wincing now and then.

"... Freya?" I called her.

"Hmm?"

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gone alone. And now you have a wound on your face," I was staring at the ground, ashamed.

There was a pause.

Then, Freya sighed loudly.

"Princess, as long as you're ok, it's fine. Besides, this is nothing!" Freya smiled at me.

I bit my lip. I should take a look at that wound for her when we get back to the music room.

* * *

Pushing the door opened with a creak, we realised that everyone was staring at us. Freya looked at the floor and made her way back to the windowsill. She held her handkerchief to her cheek.

I marched to where she was and took her bag. I rummaged through the stuff, finding what I needed. I took a seat in a chair near the sill.

"Come here, Layla," I pulled her chin to look at me.

"Haruhi, I'm fine. I can do that myself," she pushed my hand away.

"I doubt it. You don't have a mirror," I snorted.

Freya stayed silent. She knew I was right.

"Let me do it," I took my glasses off and took a pair of twizzers to get rid off any foreign solids in her cut.

The wound was not that deep, Thank God, and there weren't any clay shards embedded. It should heal without a scar. I cleaned the wound slowly.

"Close your eyes," I commanded Freya.

She quickly obliged and braced herself, knowing what was going to happen next. I took the antiseptic spray and sprayed a cotton wool. I lightly dabbed the wool onto the wound's opening. Freya slightly winced.

I then took a bandage big enough to cover the wound and placed it where it belonged.

"There! It's all done!" I smiled at Freya.

She smiled back at me happily.

"Good job, Haruhi," She beamed at me, tracing the bandage.

"Yes, very well done, Haruhi," Kyoya acknowledged behind my back.

I quickly turned and realised all the Host Club members were smiling at me. For some reason, we were the only people in the music room. When did the guests leave? Suddenly, the smiles turned into agaped mouths and widen eyes.

Self-conscious, I asked them, "What? Is there something on my face?"

"H-Haruhi, you have beautiful eyes!" Tamaki-senpai exclaimed, "We found a gem, boys!"

"We sure have, boss!" Hikaru and Kaoru chorused, slingging each other's shoulders.

"You look so pretty, Haru-chan!" Honey-senpai beamed followed with a nod from Mori-senpai.

"Hmm... A new addition to the Host Club equals profit," Kyoya-senpai murmured while writing something down.

"H-hey! What are you guys talking about?" Freya and I said at the same time.

"Well, Haruhi. Let's say your debt can be paid off even faster if you become a host. Say, you get a hundred customers and you will be debt free. A good deal, isn't it?" Kyoya-senpai presuaded.

I thought it through. Yes, it was true that being a host would get me out of debt faster. And that meant I would waste less time in the long run. Which also meant that I would not have to wait on the guys. AND it was safe here. It sounded like a great deal to me!

Then I turned to Freya with puppy dog eyes for premission. She shrugged and nodded her consent.

"Ok,"

"Great! Time for a make over!"

... And suddenly, all hell broke loose.

* * *

**Well, what do you think? Please R&amp;R!**

**All reviews are appreciated and I would like to thank you for favouriting and following this story!**

**It makes me super happy to know that you want to continue reading it!**

**Till the next chapter!**

**Love,**

**~StormAria~**


	5. Layla's Tendencies?

**Hey there! Sorry I haven't been posting these few days. I was sick and I had writer's block. Can't believe I had that! Anyway, this is more of a continuation of chapter 4. Hope you like!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC! but I really wish I did!**

* * *

Tamaki's POV

Oh, I found a gem! A gem! Truly a diamond in the rust! Just a few touches here and there and he would be a beautiful gem!

"Hikaru, Kaoru, you two do the hair!" I ordered the twins.

"Yes, boss!" they chorused, pulling out scissors.

"Kyoya, Haruhi needs a uniform," I bleamed.

"On it," Kyoya took out his cellphone, "A tailored uniform, today. Yes."

"Honey-senpai, Mori-senpai! Contacts!"

"Ok, Tama-chan!" Honey jumped onto Mori's shoulders and they sped off.

"Contacts?" Layla and Haruhi asked.

"Well, yes. We want everyone to see your beautiful eyes, Haruhi," I said nonchalantly, grinning all the while, "And I, will teach you how to be a host!"

Oh, the fun!

* * *

Layla's POV

"Come here, Haruhi! Let's change!" Hikaru and Kaoru said.

But Princess is a girl! My eyes widened when I thought that they would see her body.

"Ah, I'll take that!" I franticly took the uniform from the twins and ushered Princess into the changing room.

"Don't you think they'll wonder why you're helping me change and not them?" Princess raised an eyebrow.

"I don't care anymore if they know you're a girl! I will not let them change you!" I said as I pulled Princess' sweater off her head.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

"Hey, Hikaru," I called.

"I know, Kaoru," he replied.

"Haruhi's a girl!" we said at the same time.

"Let's play a prank on boss!" Hikaru said.

"Ok!" I agreed.

We went to Tamaki arm in arm and whisper into his ear.

"Hey, boss..." Hikaru started.

"... Did you know," I said.

"Fujikawa-san is helping Haruhi change?" we snickered.

Tamaki's face turned beet red. He looked like a tomato. Hikaru and I could not stop ourselves from laughing.

"What?" Tamaki exploded as he marched his way to the changing room, "But Haruhi's a boy!"

Oh, no. Layla was going to be furious!

* * *

Haruhi's POV

I had just started buttoning the tailored shirt one by one as Freya held the uniform's slacks up. Suddenly, the curtain to the changing room was harshly pulled opened and came in Tamaki.

"Layla-chan, it's not polite for a la-," Tamaki interrupted himself when he saw me.

Layla quickly stood infront of me, effectively covering me up. Her face was contorted into a scowl. She was beyond angry.

"Tamaki-senpai, you pervert!" I yelled at him.

He was sent flying with a precise kick from Layla. She was scary when it counted. She was a nice person but if you crossed her, be ready to step into hell.

"Get out!" She yelled at him.

I heard in the background was Hikaru's and Kaoru's laughter.

"Come on, boss. Don't tell us..." Hikaru said.

"... You didn't know Haruhi was a girl?" Kaoru ended Hikaru's sentence.

"Yeah, Tama-chan!" Honey said with a nod from Mori.

"H-Haruhi's... a girl..." Tamaki whispered with a confusion.

"Try pulling that stunt again and you're dead," Layla pushed me back behind the curtains, glaring at Tamaki.

* * *

A few minutes later...

Tamaki's POV

I sat at a corner of the room, sulkingly depressed. I could feel Layla's glare burning a hole into my back. She was still angry even though I apologised and Haruhi said it was an understandable mistake.

"Come on, Layla. Tamaki-senpai did apologise," Haruhi pointed it out for the umpteenth time.

Layla remained silent but I could feel her glare intensify. I was scared to death. If eyes could kill, I would have died a million times over.

"And I did accept his apology," Haruhi again pointed out.

I heard a small sigh from Layla and the burning sensation from my back momentarily disappeared. I quickly let go of the breath I did not even know I was holding.

"Yeah, sure, if you say so," Layla replied.

I turned, looking back and forth from Haruhi and Layla. I ran and hugged Haruhi tightly for saving my skin.

"Haruhi. Haruhi. HARUHI!" I yelled her name.

"Get off of me, senpai!" she yelled.

I heard the stomping of feet and the burning feeling on my back returned. I felt a hand grip my shoulder and winced as it tighten with every second that passed.

I hurriedly let go of Haruhi and stood behind her. Layla was fuming.

"Now he's done it," I heard Kyoya say as he typed away on his keyboard.

"Boss, look," Hikaru and Kaoru said as they comically hung themselves to show what would undoutbly happen to me in a few seconds.

Layla slowly reached down into her skirt and pulled something sharp out. W-was that a knife?! Her eyes were suddenly clouded. What was going on?

"Don't do it, Layla-chan!" Honey said pulling on Layla's shirt.

Mori quickly pulled Honey out of harm's way. Or, more like, Layla's way. I continued to cower behind Haruhi. I was going to die. I was going to die. I was going to die!

"Freya," Haruhi said sternly.

For some reason, Layla stopped her advance. She blinked her eyes and stared slowly at Haruhi as though she snapped out of a dream. She stared at the knife in her hands for awhile. Then, her eyes rested on me. All the venom had disappeared.

"I'm sorry for scaring you, Suoh-san," Layla bowed deeply to me and returned the knife where it came from.

Then, Layla silently headed straight for the windowsill. She took a seat and peered out the window, seemingly captivated by something.

Minutes passed on slowly as everyone stood still.

"Sorry about that, senpai. Layla gets like that when something happens to me," Haruhi bowed in apology.

"Ah, t-that's alright! No harm, no foul! Well, Haruhi! You training as a host starts now!" I tried to lighten the mood as though I was not just about to be murdered by Haruhi's friend.

But I could not complain. I was saved only by a hair's breath. I could have kissed the floor in thanks.

But why did Haruhi called Layla, Freya? Did that name have anything to do with breaking 'the spell'? I did not get it!

* * *

**Yeah, I think this chapter was more of a filler... Sorry about that but I needed to have the host club members know of Layla's tendencies.**

**I hope you liked it nonetheless!**

**Tell me what you think! R&amp;R please!**

**Love always, **

**~StormAria~**


	6. Naive

**Hi, I'm back! Finally, I found the will to complete this chapter! SO, I really hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: Owning OHSHC? Not me.**

* * *

Layla's POV

Today, it started drizzling.

It had been a few weeks since Princess became a host. The girls flaunt themselves all over her. It was truly cringe worthy to me since Princess was a girl. But I guessed it did not make much difference seeing as the Hitachiin twins were somewhat doing the same thing.

"Haruhi! Layla! Want to spend break with us?" Kaoru asked, waving from a distance as Hikaru trailed behind him.

I was able to tell them apart now. Kaoru was the one that actually wanted to talk to me. And Hikaru was the judgemental entity that constantly try to get on my nerves by calling me weird names.

"I don't mind having break with Haruhi. But are we seriously going to spend break with sugarplum here?" Hikaru bent to my level and poked my forehead.

At that moment, I thought I saw him taking a glance at my left arm. The wound there had already healed and what was left behind was a rugged scar. I must have imagined him doing that. Why would Hikaru, of all people, want to check my healing process?

"I wouldn't want to spend break with you either, you little devil," I gritted my teeth and swatted his hand.

"Now, now, you two," Princess tried to say before Hikaru started to crack up.

"HAHAHA! Little devil? Have you look at a mirror before, shorty?" Hikaru continued to mock me.

"Hikaru! You shouldn't be so mean to Layla," Kaoru defended me as usual.

I was not good with the insult thingy. Which made complete sense since any enemy I faced before coming to Ouran was easily dealt with a slash of a sword. So, Kaoru naturally became my saviour when Hikaru was trying to ruin my life as my personal nightmare. Princess was like a third party in all our banters, never taking sides. I guess she thought it did not really concern her.

"Yeah, yeah," Hikaru brushed his brother off.

This was how we spent almost everyday doing. Aside from my surveillance around the school. There had not been any new attacks of late which just made me more were they waiting for? Me to slip up? Or, was Princess's identity still intact? I hoped for the latter and feared gravely for the other.

Therefore, I had to be extra vigilant with my checks. I lost plenty of energy because of that and it made me have a weird longing for my bed every night. But there was no going around it.

"Hey, Layla. Have you been sleeping well? You look like a panda!" Kaoru asked while chuckling.

"I'm just fin-,"

Suddenly, I noticed a shadow outside from the corner of my eye. I quickly turned my head to face it but it had disappeared.

I felt an uneasy feeling take over.

"What's wrong, cupcake? Did you see a ghost?" Hikaru raised an eyebrow.

"Ah! Well, I guess it's your lucky day, baby demon. Kaoru, Haruhi, I won't be able to join you guys, I have... stuff to do," I childishly stuck my tongue out to Hikaru before speeding off to track down that suspicious visage.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

We watched as Layla's retreating back disappeared. I saw Hikaru's expression dropped from a hundred to zero in a blink of an eye. I wish he would realise it already! The frustration was like watching someone trying to hammer a nail into cement with a shoe.

Well, whatever. Layla was going to be in class after break anyway so, what mattered now was spending time with Haruhi!

"Shall we?" I ushered Haruhi to the cafeteria, dragging Hikaru in toll.

* * *

Layla's POV

Where the hell did that person go? I was scouring the rooftops. The rain was getting heavier by the minute. I begged that there would not be any thunder. Princess was afraid of thunder.

Something caught my eye. It was a figure that quickly disappeared on the next roof. I was hot on its tail. I jumped to the next roof with ease.

"Stop running away, you coward! Fight me!" I yelled to the other person.

My black cloth was soaked but as long as it covered my face, it did not matter. I watched as the person abruptly halted. Seems I managed to hit a sore spot.

He turned to face me, pulling out of all things, a kusarigama. I stared as he rotated the double sickle with the chain, gaining momentum. I pulled out my favourite dagger and needles - my short and long range duo.

"Do you think you can beat me with a sickle and chain?" I moved into stance.

He let out a chuckle. As quick as lightning, he thrusted the sickle to my right. I dodged with the blunt on my dagger but was too late to dodge the second sickle as it continued to rotate and caught my left leg.

Blood bloomed from the wound, tinting the rain red.

"Warning," he said.

I watched as the blood made a small pool around me. All I saw was red.

"You're going to wish you hadn't done that," I chuckled histerically.

Doubt crossed his expression but it was far too late.

The next minute I realised the man had a needle in his left thigh, his right shoulder and chest, close to his heart. He was pinned under me as I held the dagger gingerly to his vitals.

His eyes showed fear. He lacked in training - a person who takes lives, must not fear his own death. It annoyed me.

"They sent another rookie," I muttered angrily.

I had done it again. I lost myself once again. Frustrated at myself and at him, I poke his throat with the dagger.

"Spill thy secrets or spill thy blood?"

His eyes momentarily widen and then he quickly narrowed them. The rain continued to pour all over us for a minute or two. He was stubborn, just as he was suppose to be.

"Do tell me what hell is like, would you?" I told him as I cut off his lifeline.

He made no noise. His blood smeared my cheeks and arms. His heart had been pumping too fast. It was bound to happen.

I stood up from him but quickly fell back down. That was when I started to feel the pain from my thigh. Great, how was I going to hide this?

The rain continued to thunder on me. I reluctantly took the black cloth from my face and tied it to the gaping wound. I had to get to that gazebo in the maze. But before that, I whipped out my phone and called General to take care of the body.

* * *

Tamaki's POV

"Why do we have to walk all the way to the lab, Kyoya?" I exclaimed, frustrated and lazy.

We were walking through the halls of Ouran. The lab felt like it was a mile away!

"Because there is where we learn biology," Kyoya stated matter-a-factly, "But obviously you know that and is just complaining like a baby."

What a spoil sport! And so blunt too. I looked out the window to the maze. No one ever goes there. Not anymore, obviously. All there was to it was a beautifully designed gazebo smack dab in the middle.

I noticed a person running in the rain. The person looked familiar. I motioned Kyoya to have him take a look.

"Hey, Kyoya! Don't you think that looks like Layla-chan?"

"It has nothing to do with me," he said as he continued to walk forward.

I hesitated to follow him. Layla looked like she was heading for the gazebo. And limping.

"Uh, I forgot something in class! I'll go get it right now!" I sped to the maze as I felr Kyoya's gaze on my back.

Running in the rain was not fun at all. Especially if it was this heavy! But I kept running. Layla was out there. Maybe if I helped her, she would not be acting so cold to me! Yes, I had to help her!

But what if she got angry again? Haruhi was not here to save me this time. Realising that Layla could easily beat me to a plump made me rethink my intentions. Should I just turn back? No, I could not be a coward now! I had to man up.

I finally arrived at the gazebo and as I thought, there was someone there. She had long black hair that was drenched by the rain and she was not wearing a uniform. It was Layla.

"Ah, Layla-san! What are you- ?!" I stopped in my tracks.

Layla looked up in surprise. She was biting her shirt collar while pouring water on her left thigh. There was blood everywhere! On her face. Her hair. Her arms. But most of all, on her left leg.

"Suoh-san, what are you doing here!" She shouted in surprise.

Too much blood. Getting dizzy. The world seemed to spin around and around, making me dizzy. All I could see was the colour red.

And then... I black out.

* * *

Haruhi's POV

Freya was not back yet. The fifth lesson had came and went without her. I was starting to worry. I could not help myself from glancing at her desk again and again. I had hardly concentrated in any of the lessons we had after break.

I had also notice Kaoru had the same worried expression on as he glance at Freya's desk and Hikaru periodically. Which made me notice how tense Hikaru was.

* * *

Hikaru's POV

'Where the hell did you go, Layla Fujikawa! Were you trying to piss me off? Cause it was working!' I silently yelled in my head. I wonder if she was doing this on purpose just to make me worry.

Wait... Worried? About Layla? Me? I felt my entire face heat up. I was sure that I looked like a tomato by now. No! No way! I was not worried about that weird girl! No way, no how!

But... Where the hell was she?

* * *

Tamaki's POV

I regained consciousness about thirty minutes later to a sweet honey-filled humming voice. 'How enticing...' was what I thought.

I quietly sat up, realising that I was no longer at the gazebo. I found myself in the club room. I looked around for the humming voice and spotted Layla sitting at her favourite windowsill. W-w-was she angry? I cowered behind the couch.

She was humming softly to herself while staring out the window. The rain had stopped and now the garden was filled with lush and glistening flowers. The Sun shone down into the club room. I realised that it was the only source of light.

I sat as still as a rock so that she would not notice me. I continued to listen to her mellifluous hummings. It filled the quiet room with warmth. I felt like playing the piano to accompany her song.

Before I knew it, I was already sitting at the piano and playing a harmonisation to her composition. Layla abruptly stopped and turned toward me. I had stopped at about the same time, shocked at my own actions. I was worried now.

"Ah, Layla-chan! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to. My body, you see, it moved on its own and well. I couldn't help it and, you see, I , well, that happened," I started to babble.

Layla stood up from her sill and limped to the piano. I noticed that her left thigh was tightly wrapped in bandage. It looked really painful.

"Ah, Layla-chan? You don't have to come here-," I was interrupted by Layla.

"Play that again..." she mumbled and pointed to the piano.

"Huh..? Y-you want me to play?" I asked, uncertained.

Layla simply nodded her head and gestured for me to continue. S-s-she was so cute! I would have hugged her if I was not scared for my life. And one thing was for sure, I could not say 'no' to that face! So, I took a deep breath and played her a song.

"It's beautiful..." I heard Layla say as she took a seat next to me.

"T-Thank you!" I blurted out, "Uh, did you carry me all the way here?"

Layla simply hummed her response.

S-s-she carried me all the way over here! And she was limping. My ears started to get red. I was so glad that most of my face was covered in the dim light.

"S-sorry about that," I sheepishly scratched the back of my head.

"You were extremely heavy," She bluntly stated.

That was hitting below the belt. We were silent for a few minutes.

"Say, Layla-chan. Why do you hurt yourself like this?" I asked while staring at the keys.

I could imagine the shocked expression plastered on her face as she looked at me. I realised how rude that question was and I felt myself blushing.

"Ah, cause... You know, Haruhi must be worried about you and well, all of us in the host club are worried. We don't like seeing you in pain or anything. It makes us sad and you know, if you just call our names, we would come running..." I continued my frantic chatter.

Layla dropped her gaze to the floor. It was dim but I could make out the slight smile on her face.

"Suoh-san, you're so naive. You don't even know why I do what I do. You don't even know the first thing about me, how could I make you worry?" Layla asked.

I did not really have a good answer to that question. Yes, she was still a stranger to me. A mean stranger to be exact and yet... I worry. But was that not human nature?

"But... Even though you're naive, thank you,"

* * *

**And that's it for this chapter! What do you think? Was it ok? I hope so.**

**So, if you like it or if you dislike it, R&amp;R please!**

**Feedback is important!**

**Thank you and love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	7. To Be Stronger

**Hello, readers! I hope you will like this chapter. Uhh, going on with the story!**

**Disclaimer: OHSHC doesn't belong to me.**

* * *

Hikaru's POV

"Hikaru, Kaoru. You guys are finally here," Haruhi's voice greeted us.

The windowsill facing the garden was vacant. She was not here? But Haruhi was right there. Why was she not here today? I felt down as soon as I stepped into the club room.

"Hey, Haruhi! Where's Layla-san?" Kaoru waved while searching for said person.

"Oh, Layla wanted to join the kendo club," Haruhi informed him.

Kendo club? But was she not still injured? She could not possibly be thinking of joining the Kendo club with that leg injury!

"Huh? Layla-chan's joining the kendo club? Taka-chan's in that club!" Honey exclaimed with a smile.

Just then, Tamaki bursted through the doors. He had one of his goofy smiles on.

"LAYLA-CHAN~!" He screamed with glee, "Huh? She's not here,"

"Tama-chan, Layla-chan went and entered the kendo club," Honey informed him.

"Oh... Ah, but she still haven't fully recovered from her leg injury!" Tamaki pointed out.

"Well, it is Layla. Something like that won't stop her. And believe me, I've tried persuading her to wait a while longer. She wouldn't have it. Said she needed to get stronger fast," Haruhi shrugged dismissively.

"I wonder why that is..." Kyoya mumbled beside me, "Interesting..."

"Haruhi! Haruhi, Haruhi! At least you're still here!" Tamaki back hugged Haruhi, grinning from ear to ear.

It ticked me off. After what happened that day, Tamaki and Layla's relationship seemed to have gotten a lot better. I could not help remembering it as though it happened yesterday...

* * *

We were heading home from school. It was an off day for the club. Layla never came back to the classroom so Kaoru and I decided to walk Haruhi to the front gate. Haruhi was dead worried about her and it had also made me quite anxious.

Suddenly, we heard someone yelling as they passed us, heading towards the gate. It looked like a guy was bridal carrying a girl. The girl was yelling at him.

"Suoh-san! Put me down! I can walk, for goodness sakes!" the girl had yelled, knocking the guy on his head.

"Not with that injury you don't! Besides, you've already strained yourself enough carrying me to the club room," he answered her while playfully sticking his tongue out.

Oh, it was Tamaki and Layla. It was Tamaki and Layla? TAMAKI. AND. LAYLA? What were they doing together? And why was he carrying her? An injury? What injury? She was fine the last time we saw her!

"Uh... Wasn't that Tamaki-senpai and Layla?" Haruhi asked Kaoru and I in baffled confusion.

"What did buttercup get herself into now?" I hissed with venom.

"Now, now, Hikaru. There must be a good reason as to why Boss is carrying Layla-chan," Kaoru tried to persuade me.

"Which is..?" I trailed.

"Maybe she got hurt," Haruhi said worriedly as she dashed towards them.

Kaoru and I followed in her wake. We got there in time to hear what Layla said.

"Ah, Haruhi! This isn't what it looks like! I tripped... and ,uh... Will you just put me down! It's not that bad!" she pushed Tamaki's chest, frustrated eventhough her face looked flushed.

That only made Tamaki's hold around her tighten. He pulled her even closer to his chest, avoiding the bandage wrapped around her left thigh, to make sure she would not fall out of his arms. Now I was annoyed. Just seeing where his hands were touching infuriated me and I just did not understand why.

"Come on, will you stop struggling?" Tamaki asked also sounding frustrated.

"Why don't you just do as doll face here requests, boss?" I unconsciously asked Tamaki while grabbing Layla's chin and looking her dead in the eyes.

Her face slowly turned crimson as her eyes bulged out, looking at me. It was like it was saying 'You're here too?!'. I easily gave her a smirk. She quickly averted her gaze and softly punched Tamaki's chest, making me loss my hold.

"Put me down, please," she whispered.

Tamaki, sighing in frustration, gently put her down. The moment her foot touched the ground however, she hissed in agony. Hearing the cry, Tamaki scooped her right back up.

"Told you so, Layla-chan," he said as his eyes furrowed in worry.

"Ah, how is she going to get home if she can't walk?" Kaoru asked out of the blue, worry was plastered to his face.

"Yeah, that's a problem," Haruhi agreed, touching her chin in thought.

"Well, I guess Haruhi-chan and Layla-chan can ride in my car!" Tamaki answered gleefully as he turned to leave.

All of us had mirror expressions. We were completely awestruck with Tamaki's proposal. But there was no stopping him now. Haruhi, seeing this, quickly ran up to him. Layla struggled in his arms as Haruhi hit him repeatedly.

"Don't decide things by yourself!" The girls chorused as they left.

* * *

Just thinking of it got me angry.

"Hey, Hika-chan, are you alright?" Honey's voice pulled me back to the present.

"Constipated?" Kaoru jokingly asked me.

"Huh? What? Oh, I'm not constipated," I waved my hands dismissively.

No way was I going to tell them what I was really thinking.

* * *

Layla's POV

"Morinozuka-senpai is in the kendo club," I muttered to myself.

I was standing in front of the opened doors to the dojo. I watched as Mori countered and parried his opponent's assault. He was not even out of breath. I could not say the same for his opponent though. He was sweating buckets.

"Enough," Mori said as he bowed, turned around and went to the side of the dojo.

His opponent bowed his head and collapsed to the floor. His friend quickly helped him up and headed to a seat nearby. I heard squeals from the girls around me. Rolling my eyes, I slowly made my way to Mori.

He looked up at me in surprise.

"Ayu-," he shook his head, "Layla."

"Hello, Morinozuka-senpai," I bowed my head, "I would like to join the kendo club."

I kept my head bowed. He was silent for a few minutes.

"No,"

I lifted my head and blinked rapidly in confusion. Did he just say 'no'? Mori stood up and headed towards the doors. I turned on my tail and called hin again and again.

"Morinozuka-senpai! Morinozuka-senpai!"

He completely ignored me.

"MORI-SENPAI!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.

Everyone went silent. Mori stopped in his tracks. Turning around, I saw the slight smile on his face. He gestured for me to continue my plea to join.

"I want to get stronger. I need to get stronger so I can protect people. I just have to," I glared angrily at the floor, frustrated at how weak I felt.

"You're injury hasn't healed, Layla-chan," Mori pointed it out.

"I know. But... I couldn't wait. I need to be stronger now,"

"Then fight me right now," Mori said as he took a sword from one of the members, "I'll use my left hand."

I was then handed a bamboo sword. I instictively made a test swing. It was somewhat lighter than I was used to but this was no time to complain. It was so very like Mori to give me a chance to prove my resolve and I would not waste it.

He swung his left hand with precise movements. I found myself blocking all his attacks but not attacking at all. The swing of his bamboo sword seemed to toy with me. And I knew his was avoiding my left side on purpose so as to make sure I did not put weight on my left leg.

He started me down as though he was saying 'This is as far as your resolve gets?'. I steeled my determination once more. I started to attack but invain, Mori quickly recover with a counterattack. I could not get very near to him as my leg would not allow me. But that would just sound like an excuse to Mori.

In a blink of an eye, my bamboo sword flew out of my hands and fell submissively to the floor. My eyes widen in awe. He easily beat me. I was completely sure that he would say 'no' again to my request. That performance I put up was pitiful.

"... Ok. Sparring partner," Mori said as he pointed to me.

W-what? I was not just accepted, Mori was going to be my sparring partner? Was I hallucinating? Mori came up to me and plopped his big hand on top of my head.

"Good job," he whispered and left the dojo.

* * *

A few minutes later, I headed out of the dojo. I heard voices from around the corner.

"How could Mori-sama accept her?"

"And take her as his sparring partner!"

"There were so many people better than her!"

"That cutter!"

"Why doesn't she just end her life now?"

"Why mess with ours?"

"I hope she doesn't taint him with her suicidal thoughts,"

I was evidently surprise to hear what they were saying. I wanted to turn around and leave but my feet were rooted to the spot. I did not know why I could not move. It was like I was trapped in my own body.

Suddenly, I felt someone pulling me to their chest, covering my eyes and ears. It felt familiar so I did not fight him off. Familar from just now and nine years ago. He never changed.

"Don't listen," he hushed.

A few seconds passed by before he loosen his hold on me. When I opened my eyes again, Mori stared at me with worry. He reached out and caught a tear between his fingers. Shocked, I touched my face. True enough, I was crying.

"Why... do you cry?" he asked.

I simply shook my head as I angrily whipped my tears away. Mori silently patted my head to soothen me. We stayed like that for awhile. Mori was the one to finally break the silence.

"Don't listen to them. Just call my name when you need help," he gave me an encouraging hug, cleared his throat and let me go.

I watched as he walked away from me. I smiled to myself. Mori was always so caring. Always ready to lend a hand. At least, after all those years, he talks more. He was friendlier to others.

Thank you, Taka-kun...

* * *

**That's the end of this chapter! Do tell me what you think, ok?**

**Can't wait to hear back from you! R&amp;R please and thank you!**

**Here with love,**

**~StormAria~**


	8. Memories

**Hey-hey~! Sorry, it's been a few days! I didn't really know how to put some of it into words so it took longer. Hope you like!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC!**

* * *

Tamaki's POV

"Ah, here we are at Haruhi's and Layla's home!" I gestured to the housing complex.

The building looked huge from where we stood. And it was painted blue! How very commoner way of thinking! Very modest.

"Wow, isn't it big?" Hikaru and Kaoru exclaimed.

"It's so big! So, Haru-chan and Layla-chan lives in this big building," Honey said with a nod from Mori.

"Well, this is a housing complex. Haruhi and Layla lives in one of the units in the complex, not the whole building," Kyoya calmly explained.

"That's right! So, don't be rude to Haruhi and Layla. Especially the two of you, Hikaru and Kaoru! Like saying something insensitive about how small and cramp their house is!" I warned them.

"Well, too late for that now, isn't it Tamaki-senpai? What are you guys doing here?" Haruhi's angry voice cut through the air.

I flinched and turned around, ready to apologise when I saw Haruhi in girl clothing. She wore a multicoloured skirt, a red blouse and a brown jacket. She was so cute! Wait! What was I thinking? She was my daughter!

"Hey, Haruhi! We came to visit you," Hikaru said.

"Yeah, you promised, remember?" Kaoru poked her.

She pouted slightly and shook her head. I guess she was regreting that decision all over again. But that was to our advantage! Sighing, she headed up the stairs to the complex.

"What are the rest of you doing here then?" Haruhi asked everyone else with a glare.

"We're visiting you too!" I offered with a grin.

"I don't remember inviting you, senpai," Haruhi grumbled with a sour expression.

"But, Haruhi!" I whined her name in syllables.

I guess she really did not want us here. But! That was not up to her! I was her father! She could not disobey me! Now, how was I going to say that without getting her angry?

"Desserts," Mori said.

Ah hah! Just like Mori to save us from getting kicked out.

"Yeah, Haru-chan, we bought cakes and desserts to eat with you," Honey interjected.

"... And we wouldn't want to waste such delectable cakes now, do we?" Kyoya asked with a smug look.

Haruhi's eyes sparkled at the mention of cakes. She furrowed her eyebrows in thought and let out a little sigh.

"Just for the desserts. After that, you guys have to leave," Haruhi told us as she unlocked her door.

Yes!" All of us cheered.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

"I'm back, Layla," Haruhi called from the entrance as she slipped off her shoes.

Seeing her do that, Hikaru and I followed suit. We peeked inside the house. The place was really small.

"This place is pretty cramp," Hikaru said.

"Yeah..." I agreed with a nod.

"Hikaru, Kaoru! What did I just tell you guys?" Tamaki whispered in our ears in anger.

"Welcome back," Layla sighed as she revealed herself from behind a sliding panel, "Could you boil me some water? I need to clean this stupid wound again."

She wore blue short shorts and a thin camisole. All her scars were plain insight. They traced along her arms and legs like they were designed that way. I could vaguely see the scars on her stomach under the almost transparent camisole. She looked like a warrior.

Her left leg was still wrapped in bandages. It had not healed completely just yet. She was drying her long hair with a towel all the while so I guess she did not realise we were standing there. Realising that we were all staring at her, we quickly averted our eyes. Trying not to stare again.

"L-Layla! Why are you dressed like that?" Haruhi flustered.

"What are you talking about? I always dress like this at home and why are you still calling me by that-," Layla stopped herself when she heard the unmistaken sound of someone stumbling to the floor.

It was, of course, Tamaki. He tripped on his own feet when he saw her. That pretty much alerted Layla of our presence.

She hastenly took the towel and covered her front. Her normally straight hair fell in small ringlets framing her baby doll face. Her cheeks quickly took on a deep shade of red. She was embarassed beyond belief. She looked so cute. And then, she was fuming.

"P-perverts!" she yelled, turning on her heel and stomped back into what I guessed was her room.

She slammed the sliding panel with a bang. I watched as everyone flinched from the sound. Looking from face to face, I realised everyone had turned red, even Kyoya.

* * *

Hikaru's POV

I watched as she retreated into her room. I saw her back between some of her hair. Her back was full of scars but I doubted that she made them herself. All the scars looked like they were about the same thickness. They looked more like whiplashes than anything else.

She slammed the panel with anger. I involuntarily flinched at the sound. It was so loud that it echoed in the small space.

"Couldn't have given us fair warning, huh Haruhi?" Kyoya poked at Haruhi as he readjusted his glasses.

"S-sorry... I thought she would stay in her room today like she has ever since..." Haruhi timidly offered.

"Since what, Haru-chan?" Honey questioned her.

"Wound," Mori said nonchalantly.

Haruhi nodded in agreement. She headed into the kitchen and boiled some water on a stove. She looked preoccupied until she let out a hesitant sigh.

"Layla's leg wound seems to be taking longer than usual to heal. I think she's been straining herself too much," Haruhi explained.

"Yes, she has," Mori agreed.

"Layla-chan! We didn't mean to!" Tamaki begged while hugging the sliding panel.

"Shut up, Suoh!" everyone heard her reply.

"S-she hates me again..." Tamaki realised as he went to a corner and got himself all depressed over it.

I could not really care less about him right now. What I was worried about was those scars on her back. What had she gone through?

"She has a lot of scars on her back..." I mumbled to myself, "Not ones she could make herself."

Why was that? Just then, the sound of the kettle rung around the room. Haruhi turned the stove off and poured the hot water into a basin. I took the basin from Haruhi and received a dumbfounded expression from her.

I ignored the strange glances I knew the guys were making and went to Layla's room, a towel and the basin of water in hand. I wanted. No, I needed to ask her about those scars. I could not take the pretending anymore.

I knocked and slid the panel open after waiting for her consent. She looked up from the tatami mat and looked at me awestrucked. I quickly pushed the sliding panel back into place and headed to her.

"You should really close your mouth before a fly decides to fly into it, sunshine," I smirked.

"What are you doing here, satan?" Layla said after recovering from the shock.

I silently passed her the basin of water and towel. She accepted it without question. We sat there in awkward silence.

* * *

Honey's POV

What was up with Hikaru? Oh, maybe he was finally being nice to Layla! That would be nice. I smiled at the thought of it.

Speaking of Layla. She kind of reminded me of my childhood friend, Ayumi. Not their personality though, they were completely different. She could be Ayumi's lookalike.

I remembered when I used to be so mean to Ayumi. She was just too nice and she was amazing at taekwando, even better than me at the time. We were only a year apart in age. Her family, the Tomoyuki's, were experts in archery. The best, really. We were neighbours.

And, my Usa-chan was originally hers. I stole it from her on her seventh birthday. It seemed like a great idea at the time. Make her miss Usa-chan for a day and see what she would do. But then, that was the last time I saw her.

That night, the Tomoyuki's no longer existed.

"Ayumi..." I whispered sadly, "Where are you now?"

Mori, having heard me, patted my head to comfort me. He always told me that Ayumi would want me to keep Usa-chan; she was my everything now. I did not care what people thought of me when I held Usa-chan. If I ever lost her, I would have lost Ayumi again. That was not something I could bare.

* * *

Layla's POV

This silence felt so stiff and awkward. I found myself catching Hikaru stealing glances at me. And everytime our eyes met, we would quickly avert our eyes, completely flushed. It was like he wanted to say something. But, whatever it was, it was not being said.

I tried to ignore him when I unravel the old bandages. The wound under it was closing up but it was healing excruciatingly slow. I heard a gasp coming from Hikaru. I glanced at him and watched as his eyes opened wide.

"Does... it hurt?" he asked with a frown as his hand subconsciously reached out to me.

"Ah, kind of. You can say that it stings?" I shrugged.

I watched as he gritted his teeth. Was he angry? I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. Looking away, I dipped the towel he gave me into the now warm water. Suddenly, I felt Hikaru's hand on mine.

"Here, let me do it," he said seriously.

"Oh, that's ok! I can do it myself. Besides, I disgust you, don't I?" I mumbled sadly, staring at the floor.

I felt his grip on my hand tighten. Surprised, I looked up at him. His eyes were staring daggers at me.

"What on Earth are you talking about? You don't disgust me! Not at all," he voice sounded strain as he tried to control it.

I swallowed hard. Hikaru's eyes widen and then they became soft. That was the first time he looked at me without all the anger and sarcasm. He reached out and touched my chin. I was so surprised that I did not pull back.

"I didn't mean to startle you," he whispered, "Please, let me help you."

All I could do was nod. I watched as he dipped the towel back into the warm water and twisted it to get rid of excess water. He carefully dab the towel to the wound and I felt the slight tremble in his hand. Watching his serious face, I could not help but smile.

After awhile, I softly pushed his hand away. He looked up to meet my eyes and I gave him a soft smile which told him that it was enough.

I then took the roll of bandage and wrapped my thigh once again. I felt his eyes on my hands, silently watching their movements. When I was done, Hikaru looked up at my face.

"Why...?" he asked vaguely.

I furrowed my eyebrows, uncomprehending. He sighed and looked away from me.

"Why do you have so many scars?" he tried again.

I bit my lip. I had to lie but I did not want to.

"What a question to ask a cutter," I started.

"Stop! Stop pretending!" he exploded, "If that's true or not, that only explains the scars on your arms and legs. What about your back, Layla? What about that?"

I just stared at him. His face was contoured into something between angry and worry. He fisted his hands and punched the floor. After a moment, he looked at me and I stood up.

"They were my punishments. But I don't get them anymore, ok?" I told him and gestured that we should get back to the others.

He did not look satisfied but he did not push it. He got to his feet, walked to the sliding panel and patted my head.

"I'm... sorry for being mean to you all this time, sweetheart. And don't think that those names I call you are sarcastic," he look down to me, "Just promise to call me when you need help."

And we returned to the living room.

* * *

How did we end up spying on Princess and Tamaki at the supermarket? Oh, yeah. General hurt Tamaki's feelings. I sighed loudly as the guys and I hid in one of the aisles.

But obviously, the host guys were sticking out like a sore thumb. General moved closer to eavesdrop on what they were talking about. So, all of us did the same.

"Ah, the tuna's a bit pricey," Haruhi said before moving along.

"HUH? That's pricey?" Tamaki asked in awe.

Haruhi simply ignored him. Has he never been to a supermarket before? I glanced at the other guys. I guess none of them had ever gone to the supermarket before. Which remind me that Haruhi had only started going to the market when we entered Ouran. She was a natural.

"Oh, potatos! Layla loves eating potatos. I'll get them!" Haruhi exclaimed.

"Layla-chan likes potatos?" Honey asked me, tilting his head to the side.

I simply nodded with a smile.

"Huh, Ayumi-chan couldn't get enough of that stuff too," Honey mumbled, distracted.

I looked at him in shock. Why was he talking about Ayumi? I averted my eyes and pretend as though I had not heard him.

Even after nine years, it still hurt to talk about Ayumi Tomoyuki and my family. Our family.

* * *

**And that's the end of this chapter! Thank you for reading and I hope you liked it.**

**I didn't put the price for the tuna cause I didn't know how much they cost.**

**Hikaru really changed in this chapter, don you think?**

**Please R&amp;R! They give me more motivation to write.**

**Love you always,**

**~StormAria~**


	9. Ayumi Tomoyuki

**Hey hey! So, it's valentines day. Nothing much going around here. Well, except having someone confess to me. It was weird and awkward and, well, I didn't like him that way...**

**Anyway, this chapter came a bit earlier that it should but since I kind of screwed up with timeline, I just hope you can bare with it. I hope you like it even with the screw ups!**

**Disclaimer: OHSHO is not mine.**

* * *

Layla's POV

I sighed, looking up at the blue sky. Another year has passed, huh?

I was at a cemetary. In front of me was the graves of the Tomoyuki family, a family that specialised in archery. Truly the best of the best.

I sweeped and cleaned the graves with care. Removing old and withered flowers and replacing them with new ones.

I pocketed a thick letter that had been sitting there for the past year. I knew who it was from and to whom it was to be given to. But I had never opened any of the six letters. I was not her; I had to respect that.

Once I was done, I kneeled down infront of one of the graves. The stonehead was slightly worn out. It had 'Ayumi Tomoyuki, 7 years old' engraved into the stone but I knew the grave itself was made seven years ago, when I was nine.

If she was alive, Ayumi would be my age - sixteen.

"Hello, Ayumi. It's been awhile, hasn't it?" I asked, "I miss everyone, you know. I still can't believe my choice and I sometimes regret it even though it's been nine years."

I touched the words carved into the stone. The stone was cold as ice, just like the first time I came here.

"I met Mitsu-kun and Taka-kun. They seem healthy. I have good news too! Mitsu-kun kept his promise, he's taking good care of Usa-chan," I beamed with a tear in my eye.

The wind drowned my voice and it faded into nothing.

"I still really regret what happened nine years ago. But you and I both know that if I made a different choice, I'd be under here," I patted the ground, "General also regreted what he had done but I owe this life to him. He still haven't forgave himself enough to visit you guys."

"Ayumi, you're starting to fade from in here," I placed my hand above my heart, "And I don't know how to stop you from fading."

I looked at the sky again. The wind was picking up, blowing my hair into my face.

"But I promise you and the Tomoyuki family that I will do whatever it takes to keep you guys in my memory," I told the gravestones, "You won't ever fade completely from me because the past shaped the present and all of you had shaped me to be who I am today."

"So, thank you,"

I stood up and turned to leave. Walking a few steps, I felt the wind caress my face and clothes. It was like it was giving me a hug. I love you...

"Layla-chan? What are you doing here?"

* * *

Honey's POV

Layla stopped in her tracks. She looked up at me with widen eyes. Her eyebrows hid under her bangs as her hair whipped around her. She wore a knee-length black dress and black knee socks. Was she visiting someone?

"Mitsu-kun," she said.

Wait, did I hear right? She called me Mitsu-kun? I only knew one person that had ever called me that. And that was...

"Ayumi-chan?" I asked uncertained.

Layla snapped out of her daydream. Shaking her head, she frowned apologeticaly.

"No, but I knew her. Ayumi-chan is... was my cousin," she corrected herself as she averted her eyes, "She... Talked about you and Morinozuka-senpai alot."

I blinked my eyes. Layla bit her lip and put on a worried expression. Ayumi still had a cousin? I thought they all died that night, on Ayumi's seventh birthday.

"You're her cousin? I'm sorry but... Ayumi-chan never talked about you," I furrowed my eyebrows.

"That's ok. I didn't expected her to anyway," she replied with a small smile.

Well, I could not just up and asked her how she was still alive. That would be rude.

"Would you wait for me? We can have coffee at a cafe nearby!" I asked her out.

I watched as Layla's eyes widen once more. After awhile, she timidly nodded her head. I smiled and headed to the Tomoyuki's gravestones.

I had a short chat with Ayumi and her family, then I placed a letter on her gravestone as I always did. She would never read it but I would never stop writing to her, my dear bunny girly.

* * *

Haruhi's POV

I am so sorry, Freya! But I was going to go to school today!

Freya told me to skip school today because of the anniversary of the deaths of the Tomoyuki family but I had to come. The Host Club needed me. Especially since Honey-senpai had personal stuff going on and Mori-senpai had his kendo activities.

But even I knew that was just an excuse. I wanted to show Freya that I could take care of myself. That nothing bad would happen to me when she was not around.

I hoped she would forgive me. Crossing my fingers, I hoped with all my might.

The day went by without a hitch. It was such a peaceful day that it made me wonder what Freya was worried about. Surely I was safe at school as much as I was safe at home.

It happened when I was at the Host Club, carrying a tray full of teacups and a teapot. Suddenly, I felt someone staring at me from Freya's window. It became her window since she would not sit anywhere else in the room, unless Honey drags her off for some cake.

Turning toward the window, I saw a figure in black peering from the outside. But this was the second floor! That should not be possible!

I felt the tray slip from my hands as I stared back at the figure in awe. Feeling the slip of the tray, I cringed at the loud sounds of teacups breaking and the clatter of the tray. Some of the tea that remained from the teapot splashed its way onto my uniform making me smell like Earl Grey Tea.

"Haruhi! Haruhi!" Tamaki called running towards me, "Are you alright?"

"Ah, I saw-," I stopped myself when I looked back at the window, realising that the visage had disappeared, "Oh, ah, I'm fine."

I went on my knees and tried to pick up the broken pieces. My hands were trembling the whole time. That figure, was it after me? The thought itself ran a shiver down my spine.

I wish Freya was here. I really should have just stayed home today, like Freya told me to do. At this rate, not only would Freya be furious, General Fujikawa would be too!

Ah, ouch! I had just cut myself with a teacup shard. I watched as the blood trailed down my index finger.

"I'm... Bleeding?" I murmured the question absentmindedly to no one in particular.

Eventhough it was a soft as a whisper, Tamaki, Kyoya, Hikaru and Kaoru had all heard me.

"Haruhi's hurt!" Hikaru and Kaoru said surprised, coming closer to look at my bleeding finger.

"Haruhi - my daughter is bleeding! Mother, what should we do?!" Tamaki overreacted and asked Kyoya.

The said mother let out an expressive sigh.

"Who's mother now?" Kyoya asked out of habit and then he took charge,"Here, I have the first-aids. I'll deal with the cut. You guys deal with the glass."

* * *

Honey's POV

I was sitting infront of Layla in a cafe. I watched as she fidgetted. I could tell she was not used to this. On the table there were a variety of sweets and two cups of coffee.

"Lay-chan, you don't have to be so nervous," I grinned at her.

"L-Lay-chan?" She raised an eyebrow in confusion.

I chuckled. Layla can be so cute sometimes. And I was a hundred percent sure that she did not self-harm. Layla cared about Haruhi too much. I bet she would even take a bullet of her.

"That's your new nickname! You like it?" I looked at her, expectantly.

She smiled. Like, a really smile! That's the first time I had ever seen her true smile. It made me feel all bubbly inside.

"Yey! You smiled!" I could not help cheering.

A faint blush tinted Layla's cheeks.

"What are you talking about?! I smile," Layla intensely stared at her coffee mug.

I could not help but chuckle at her antic. After awhile, we slowly returned into a relaxed silence. I, of course, stuffed myself with the array of sweets and cakes in front of me. They were so delicious that I could not help myself!

Layla, however, was looking at Usa-chan with an absentminded expression.

"What are you thinking, Lay-chan?" I tilted my head.

"You kept Usa-chan..." Layla's voice faded.

Usa-chan? But I stole Usa-chan from Ayumi on that day. I felt the guilt raising from inside me. I guessed I should give it to Layla, since she was Ayumi's cousin.

"Uh, yeah... She's the only thing I have to remember her of," I looked down at my plate forlonly, "But I guess, I should return her to you."

"Ah! No no! Ayumi gave Usa-chan to you. She's yours!" Layla frantically waved her hands.

"B-but I stole her," I could feel the tears swell from my eyes, "I stole her on the last day I would ever see Ayumi-chan again!"

Layla abruptly stood up at my outburst. She surprised me when she rounded our table and hugged me where I sat. When she pulled away, she stared intensely into my eyes.

"Haninozuka-senpai, Ayumi told you to take good care of Usa-chan, didn't she? You didn't steal her. She was intrusted to you," Layla said seriously, "Ayumi trusted you to keep Usa-chan close to you. You did that, right? Ayumi must be happy."

I nodded my head enthusiasticly. I held unto every word Layla said. It felt like a weight was lifted of my shoulders. All my regrets at taking Usa-chan away from Ayumi melted away like butter.

"Wait, how are you sure she would be happy? She's not here," I dampened my spirits once more.

"Oh, I know for a fact that she's happy. Look who you're talking to!" Layla grinned from ear to ear, "A-and I can tell you that... Ayumi-chan had a crush on you."

I blushed softly. My spirits were lifted. It felt like a lifetime since I was this happy. The last time was when Ayumi was still... I could not bring myself to say it. It was not like her body was under that gravestone.

"You know, Lay-chan, I still believe Ayumi-chan is still out there. Even after nine years, I still have hope that she's alive. I really wish she would hurry up and find me already," I smiled sheepishly at Layla.

Layla was stunned to hear me say that. She let out a sad smile and patted my head.

"I'm sorry," Layla started crying, "I'm so sorry, Mitsu-kun. I know she's out there. Maybe even closer than we think, but she has to be out there. It's a small world after all."

It was my turn to give Layla a hug. Tears started to stream down my face as well.

"I-I love her too, Lay-chan. She was my dear bunny girly. I miss her so much that it hurts every year, every day, every hour! But it's always the worst on her anniversary. I'm glad I have you with me this year. It doesn't hurt as much," I smiled through the flowing tears.

When Layla and I finally calmed down, we started to laugh at the humour of our situation. That was another first, Layla's laughing face. It reminded me of Ayumi's laughter. They could be twins. I smiled at the thought.

* * *

Hours later...

Layla's POV

I finally reached home. Opening the front door, I noticed the weird tension between General and Princess.

"What's going on?" I broke the silence.

"Freya, take off your shirt," General said.

Oh, Princess, what did you do? I furrowed my eyebrows and silently asked Princess with a look. Her eyes widen with shock and pain. I noticed the bandage on her right index finger.

"No! Don't punish Freya for what I did!" Princess objected, "She told me not to go today! It's my fault, punish me!"

"Why do you have to disobey, Princess? Pain is the easiest way to learn from a mistake and you know I cannot harm you. So, you shall learn from Freya's pain," General said sternly while pulling out his leather belt.

This was going to hurt.

* * *

**Yup, this chapter came out wayyyyy too early.**

**Ah, well. What's done is done.**

**I just hope you guys liked it.**

**Anywaysss, R&amp;R please!**

**Love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	10. Punishment

**Hey there! Since I finished this chapter early, I decided to just submit it. I'm nor aure how long I'll take to write chapter 11 though so it'll be more than a few days. Hope you like this chapter though!**

**Disclaimer: I no own OHSHC**

* * *

Haruhi's POV

Freya braided her jet black hair to the side, effectively exposing her back. She sat on her knees, her back to us and slowly unbuttoned her black dress, letting it fall in a heap around her thighs. She had not worn a bra today so her bare back was facing us.

I stared at the old scars made by General's belt on Freya's back. All the punishment she had to endure all those years to be who she was now. Every mistake that she made. Every mistake that I made. All of it had marked intricately on Freya's body.

Why did I chose to disobey General's and Freya's warning? Did I want this? Of course not! And now Freya was going to be punished for what I did. On THE anniversary, no less! What was I? An idiot?! A sadist?

"I seriously hope you learn from this, Princess. It's been a year since I had to mark Freya's body. And don't think I do this for fun; I love my daughter," General reminded me as he lifted his belt, a stern expression on his face.

"Learn from this, Princess," Freya clenched her teeth as she braced herself on the wall in front of her.

I felt tears rolling from my eyes as I clenched my teeth at being the reason for Freya's punishment. And just after she had recover from her leg wound!

Slash after slash came thundering down on Freya's back. I heard every crack of the belt and every hiss that came from Freya's clenched lips. Saw every agonising expression that crossed Freya's face. Watched the tremble from her body as she tried not to scream out.

"Stop! Stop it! That's enough!" I yelled invain.

Freya's skin was tearing and blood seeped out of the belt marks. Her tears fell like a river down her face and I knew General was far from over.

"Stop it! She had enough! I've seen enough!" I said desperately at General Fujikawa.

And yet, he did not stop.

* * *

Layla's POV

Six... Seven... Eight... Nine...

My skin was burning. He was not going to stop any time soon. Princess pleaded for him to stop. He was not going to.

Thirteen... Forteen... Fifteen... Sixteen...

Pain after pain course through me. I felt the tears going down my face. They betrayed me. And the belt's advance still did not stop. I was on fire.

Twenty-two... Twenty-three... Twenty-four...

"Are you trying to kill her?! Stop it at once!" I numbly heard Princess's voice.

Twenty-... Nine... Thir-... ty...

I collapsed face first on the floor. My arms could not hold me anymore. I had no strength. No energy. I was completely spent. I heard General's belt whipped at the air as he cleaned his belt of my blood.

My consciousness driffed. That was all I could remember as the darkness engulfed me.

I closed my eyes.

* * *

Haruhi's POV

Freya fell forward. I was too far to catch her. Too shocked to move. Freya's eyes fell shut.

"I hope you're satisfied with your decision, Princess," General said sadly as he headed to his room, leaving Freya on the floor.

General was trained as an assassin. He was an assassin. He had destroyed Freya's whole family because they had a bounty on their heads but decided to keep her. This was the most humane of punishment that he knew of.

I scrambled to my feet. I hovered my hand above Freya's back. The heat of it could cook an egg! I rushed into the kitchen, wet a towel and grabbed the ice from our small fridge.

I placed the towel gently unto Freya's burning skin. The blood that oozed out of her wounds tinted the towel red. I winced at the dreadful sight. I took the ice and placed them on top of the towel to lower the burning temperature.

What now? What was I suppose to do now? I was panicking.

At that moment, I thought I heard a relieved sigh from Freya. I smoothen out her hair and whispered 'I'm sorry' to her over and over again, like a mantra until the Sun rose.

* * *

The next day...

I woke up on the floor. Freya was not beside me. I looked around in panic. Where did she go?

"Relax, I'm here, Princess," Freya called from the kitchen.

I stood up and took big strands to Freya. Freya's back was facing towards me. She was not wearing a shirt so I could clearly see the huge bandage wrapped around her back, torso and shoulders. She was also standing abnormaly straight.

"How long are you going to stare? Get ready already. We're going to school," She spoke with her back to me, making toast.

"B-but you're still hurt! Where's General? He should be taking care of you!" I exclaimed.

Frrya turned to look at me. Her face had a lack of expression on it.

"He went to 'work'. And we're going to school whether you want to or not, Princess," Freya bluntly told me.

No, this was not like Freya. Freya was gone again. This was... This was a cold robot. Freya was broken once again... and it was my fault.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

Layla seemed absent spirit-wise today. She stood straight. She sat at attention. And I had not heard her say a word. Not even a hello. It was like she was not even there in her own body. Just an empty shell.

I had to ask Haruhi what happened to her. Ever since she was absent yesterday, I had been worried. Something was definitely not right.

Even Haruhi was not concentrating on the lesson. Every so often I would see Haruhi glance toward Layla with worry.

"Hey, Kaoru," Hikaru called me.

"Yeah, Hikaru?" I whispered back at him.

"Something's off with Layla, isn't it?" Hikaru asked with gritted teeth.

He tighten his hold on his pen. It looked like it was about to break.

"I think so too. It's like she's not there," I informed him.

Hikaru loosened his hold on his pen. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He was always acting like this when it came to Layla. He was always so worried. It was not like Haruhi and I were not.

"Let's ask Haruhi during lunch," I proposed.

"Yeah..." he replied through tight jaws.

* * *

Lunch time arrived. Hikaru and I caught hold of Haruhi by her shoulder. She turned around startled. When she realised it was us, she calmed down.

"Hey, Haruhi," Hikaru started to talk but he suddenly blushed at the question he meant to ask.

He quickly looked at me. Telling me to say it. I sighed. And it was so close too!

"What's up with Layla?" I asked.

Haruhi's face fell. She stared at the ground to avoid eye contact with us. I glanced at Hikaru and he did the same to me. I shrugged, not knowing what else to do.

Just then, Layla headed our way.

"Ah, Layla! Hi!" I smiled at her.

She gave me a curt nod, glanced at Hikaru and quickly turned to Haruhi. That was not like Layla to do that. She would at least smile a little. Even Hikaru noticed. Or, should I say, especially Hikaru.

"What? Not even a smile today, sweet cakes?" He still have not goten rid of that habit eventhough they were not fighting anymore.

"I can't go for break with you today, Haruhi. I have... stuff to do," She averted her eyes, completely ignoring Hikaru.

The last time Layla said that, she came back with a leg wound that took weeks to heal. What was she hiding? Was she still cutting? I doubt it very much. I did not believe she ever cut in the first place.

"What the hell's with that?" Hikaru yelled, pulling Layla's right arm to turn towards him.

Haruhi eyes widen with shock at Hikaru's outburst. She quickly went between them, holding onto Hikaru's wrist. Her eyes pleaded him to let go of Layla.

Though Haruhi blocked Layla's face from Hikaru, she was completely in my view. I saw her winced in pain and the slight tremble she was trying to hide. I realised that she was hurt, one way or another.

"Hikaru," I called, snapping Hikaru out of his angry trance.

Hikaru loosen his hold just then. Layla, realising that, quickly pulled her arm back and ran.

"Layla!" Hikaru called out to her.

I held him back. He looked at me, anger, worry and confusion were plainly written on his face. I shook my head, telling him not to go. He was so shock at her quick escape that he did not call her by one of his teasing nicknames for her. He gave up on trying to get out of my hold when he realised that I was not going to let go.

"Haruhi, talk," Hikaru glared at Haruhi.

Haruhi's shoulders slumped. She begged with her eyes, telling Hikaru and I to let it go. She could not and she would not say it.

Hikaru and I shared a glance. We knew exactly what to do to make Haruhi talk.

"Haruhi, let's have lunch together," we said cheerfully in unison, dragging rather than escorting Haruhi to the cafeteria.

* * *

Layla's POV

I ran as fast and as far as I could. The pain in my back was getting worse, it was almost unbearable. When I had spent all my energy, I found myself on the roof of the main building.

I fell on my knees, trying to catch my breath. The pain was excruciating by now. I wanted to yell out. Hikaru must have unknowingly tore open one of the wounds when he pulled my arm.

I bit down on my shirt sleeve and muffled a scream. Freya, you have to hold it together. Just calm down and breathe. Just breathe. If people started to find out, it would get worse. I somehow managed to get a hold of my reigns.

* * *

Hikaru's POV

Haruhi, Kaoru and I were seated at the table next to the grand window in the cafeteria. Light streamed in and bathe us with it's glow. I could hear the girls squealing from all corners of the place.

Kaoru and I gave them a teasing wink which caused the ladies to swoon and I thought I saw a girl faint. Layla would never have given us that type of reaction. Nor would Haruhi but she was a host.

I glanced at Haruhi. She was staring intently at her packed lunch, like it was the most fascinating thing in the world. A few girls started crowding around her, wanting to know what 'he' had packed for break.

"Kya! Haruhi! Did you make that yourself?" the girls ask in unison.

"It looks so cute and yummy!" a girl said.

"Ah, no, not this time-," Haruhi was cut off by Kaoru.

"That looks yummy! Can we trade?" Kaoru gesture to his plate of filet mignon.

Haruhi, seeing the huge steak on Kaoru's plate, started to drool. I wondered why Kaoru wanted to trade at all, since it was not Haruhi's cooking. But... That meant it was...

"Oh, Haruhi, you can have mine too," I pushed my plate of lobster ravioli with crabmeat cream sauce towards her, "So, Haruhi's pack food is mine!"

"Hey, I gave mine to Haruhi first!" Kaoru protested.

"But mine tastes better than your filet mignon!" I countered.

"Hikaru, are you really going to take Haruhi's pack food away from me?" Kaoru asked timidly.

"Ah, Kaoru! If you really want it," I sighed dramatically and bit my lip, "Take it!"

"No, Hikaru! You really really want it, don't you?" Kaoru stared forlonly at the pack food then lifted his head to stared at me, "You take it."

Kaoru and I stood up and crossed the table, meeting in the middle. We looked into each others eyes as though we were staring at each others souls.

"How about we share, Kaoru?" I proposed.

"Hikaru,"

"Kaoru,"

Haruhi ignored our childish banter and make up session and took a bite of the ravioli. She face lite up like the Sun.

"It's so good!" She exclaimed.

We both stared awestruck at her.

That reminded me of Layla's weird behaviour. I gave Kaoru a look and he nodded. We sat on either side of Haruhi, our arms slung on her shoulders.

"Say, Haruhi. You haven't told us..." I started.

"... What's wrong with Layla-chan?" Kaoru finished my sentence.

Haruhi sighed and abruptly stood up to leave. Before we lost sight of her, she turned and whispered. It was almost a murmur but we managed to make out what she said.

"It's completely my fault. I'm sorry..."

* * *

**Anddd... That's it for now! Was it ok?**

**R&amp;R please! Chapter 11 might take awhile to complete so...**

**I hope to see you soon!**

**Love,**

**~StormAria~**


	11. Another Side of Kyoya

**I'm back. Yeah, I'm not so thrilled this week 'cause my government exam results are coming out in a week. I really don't know what I feel. Oh, well. Hope you like this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC!**

* * *

Kyoya's POV

The doors to the music room cracked opened. Layla, Haruhi and the twins came through. Ok, that was everyone.

"Lay-chan! Lay-chan!" Honey grabbed Layla's hands and jumped up and down in front of her, "I've missed you, Lay-chan!"

Lay-chan was it? Honey called Layla 'Lay-chan'. I wonder what happened. Granted, they were both absent yesterday.

"Ah, Honey-senpai, I don't think that a good-," Haruhi started to warn Honey.

"Don't touch me!" Layla screamed.

What an outburst! Was something the matter with Layla, I wonder? Honey froze on the spot. His eyes widen from getting reprimanded by Layla.

"Don't touch me, don't hug me. Not today, Mitsu-kun, not for awhile," Layla's eyes turned watery.

Oh? What was this? Even Layla was calling Honey by 'Mitsu-kun'? When did they get so close? Only Mori calls Honey by his given name amd even he did not shorten it to 'Mitsu'.

Whatever it was, she must be inpain. Layla pulled her hands from Honey's grasps. She hugged herself tightly and unsteadily made her way to her window.

It was not my problem. I would gain nothing out of care for her anyway.

"Enough wasting time. The guests are waiting," I rounded the guys while glancing at Layla's side profile.

* * *

"Hey, Kyoya-senpai. Could I ask you a favour?" Haruhi timidly came up to me.

"Depends on that favour and what I might get from it," I replied without looking up at her.

"It's about Layla. Can you please look her over?" she asked.

"Look her over?" I raised an eyebrow, intrigued.

"Yes, could you? But not one of your doctors. I doubt Layla would let them check her. Let alone, look at her," Haruhi averted her eyes.

What could I ask from Haruhi? Or, more, Layla? I realised that the customers had a change in attitude towards Layla recently. Some of them even tried to start small talk with her. Not only them, but the male students had also seemed to show interest in her. Sticking their heads through the crack in the door every now and then, watching as she gets lost in her own world. Maybe I could put her to work?

"Fine, only if she cosplays with the rest of us whenever we're doing so," I offered.

"Layla? Cosplay? W-why would you want that?" Haruhi asked flustered.

"That's for me to know and you to find out," I looked down at her through my glasses, "Do we have a deal?"

Haruhi thought it through. After awhile, she sighed loudly and nodded her head.

I smiled deviously and walked to Layla, leaving Haruhi behind. Noticing my approach, Layla gave me a cautious once over. I readjusted my glasses and stared down curiously at her for a few seconds.

"Come with me," I said as I turned and went to the third music room's side rooms.

"O-Ootori-san!" Layla called back to me.

I ignored her, knowing very well that she would follow me. Though, not willingly.

* * *

Layla's POV

"What do you want, Ootori-san?" I asked him as he shut the door tight.

"It's not what I want. It's what the princess wants. Come here," he said as he walked to the table in the middle of the compact room and patted it.

He had a look of demused as I stood there, very much confused as he rolled up his sleeves. He gestured with his hand, motioning me to approach the table.

"... And what, pray tell, did Princess want?" I asked as I catiously step closer to the table.

Kyoya let out a small smirk and patted the table again. But with my slow progress, he sighed frustratedly.

"She wants me to check that back of yours," he replied nonchalantly and gesture to my shirt, "So, take that off."

Sighing, I shrugged off my shirt and laid on my stomach. Kyoya gently cut off the bandages I clumsily wrapped around myself and pulled them away from my back. He stood there in silence, staring at my back.

"What did you do? Run a blade several times through it?" he asked retorically with a hint of surprise, "And did you go jogging right after? So many of them tore."

I remained quiet. I was not oblige to answer his questions anyway. And Kyoya knew that.

"I'm going to start," he warned me before cleaning out the wounds.

I gritted my teeth. No, Kyoya was definitely NOT a gentle guy. He was a straight up sadist. I felt every stroke of his angry fingers over my wounds. I guess he did not like not getting an answer.

"Alright already! I'll tell you! Just stop torturing me so much!" I yelled at him.

"Good girl,"

He lifted him hands. He patted my head and I could feel the smirk he was giving me. I sighed loudly and told him.

"This was all because of yesterday. Princess disobeyed our request and she got hurt. Even a little. And since I wasn't there for her, I was punished," I told him as he resumed the treatment but without the maliciousness from before.

"Well, that is a stupid reason for this kind of punishment," Kyoya commented.

"It was both of our punishment. But she's a princess, we would never lay a hand on her," I told him nonchalantly.

"Hmmm... Then, it was also my fault that you were punished," Kyoya revealed vaguely.

"What do you mean?" I asked quizically.

"Well, I told Ranka what happened. Haruhi was surprised when she saw a figure out of your window. I obviously saw it too and thought how odd that was to be. I mean, it was the second floor," He chatted.

We fell silent. I felt the cooling sensation as Kyoya applied the burning medication onto my back. I let out a relieved sigh.

After awhile, the silence felt a bit more comfortable. It felt like I had always known Kyoya and vice versa.

"I wasn't always like this, you know," I started the conversation.

"Care to elaborate, Freya?" he called me by my name.

He must have figured it out when he was snooping around Princess' past. But, I really did not mind that he knew it. It felt refreshing for some unknown reason.

"I was a normal kid, really. I smiled, played around in a playground and had two best friends," I smiled fondly at the memories.

Kyoya continued listening as he finished applying the cream with oh-so-gentle hands. He washed his hands and patted them dry.

"But all of that changed on that faithful day. My entire family was murdered before my eyes," I paused to check his reaction.

He remained stoic. How very like Kyoya. And how unlike me to tell him, of all people, my past.

"Then, I found myself taken in by my family's murderer. The only thing that saved me that day was my uncanning resemblance to his dead daughter," I sighed.

"Ranka... murdered your family? Why?" Kyoya asked, his voice betrayed any interest he had.

"We had a bounty on our heads, put there by our rivals in archery. But I didn't find out which family nor did Ranka reveal them," I nonchalantly replied.

Kyoya studied my back for awhile before he told me to sit up. I obeyed and he started to wrap the lashes in white bandage.

"He taught me to fight. To survive in a cruel world and that feelings cloud good judgement. He thought me how to ignore my feelings. He was my master, my saviour, my punisher and my father. After a year of harsh training, we worked with the imperial guard. That was when I met Princess," I smiled softly.

"Lift your arms a bit, Freya," Kyoya whispered behind me.

I did as he told me to. I stared at the floor as he finished up with the bandaging. He handed me my shirt and helped me button the front.

"You've changed quite a lot these couple of months, haven't you? Was it, perhaps, our doing?" Kyoya stood in front of me with an arched eyebrow.

I smiled. Have I really changed? I did not think so. I was just the same Freya, just the same person.

"I'm still me," I told him truthfully.

"Not what I meant. But you have changed, 'Lay-chan'," Kyoya bent down to my height and place his hand on my head, "Don't you trust us? Trust me, my dear?"

Trust them? Trust him? I had never asked myself that question. Do I trust him? I wore a perplexed expression. What did I think of them?

Just then, Kyoya sighed. He looked me in the eyes and pulled my cheek.

"O-Oww! What was that for, Kyoya-san?!" I yelled at him as I rubbed my cheeks.

"For taking too long to answer such a simple question. Of course, you trust us, 'Layla'. You wouldn't be in this room if you didn't. You wouldn't even allow Haruhi be in the next room without you there if you didn't!" he turned his back to me.

I let what he said sink in. I did trust them enough with Princess, didn't I? So, I must have trust them enough to some degree. I bit my lip at that thought. I trust them with Princess.

"You know you can trust us. You just don't want to admit it. We'll have your back whether you want it or not, Layla-san, so you better just accept it now," he said as he opened the door for me.

"You aren't even a bit patient, are you?" I arched my eyebrows.

He let out a surprised laugh.

"And here I thought I was patient enough,"

I smiled, seeing Kyoya's unguarded laughter. I guess it was possible to change, even if it was me. I did it once before, I could always do it again.

* * *

Tamaki's POV

I noticed Layla and Kyoya come out of the spare room. What were they doing together?! I marched up to them, ready to explode.

"Layla, it isn't ladylike to be in a room alone with a guy!" I reprimaded her.

Layla pulled up a shock expression and opened her mouth to defend herself. But I stopped her.

"No, no, I don't want to hear it, young lady! You are a girl, you have to be careful about all of this!" I continued with my scolding.

"What do you think of me, Tamaki," Kyoya asked me as he readjusted his specs.

"Ah, well. It's not just you. It's any guy! It's dangerous being alone with a guy!" I stumbled on my words.

"But... I was alone with you before, Tamaki," Layla pointed it out.

My face turned red. It was when she had her leg injury and I played her a song on the piano. And yes, we were alone.

"T-that's different!" I yelled.

"I really don't see how that's any different," Layla puffed up her cheeks as she averted her eyes.

Kyoya, who stood beside her, poked her puffed up cheeks with his pen. She unintentionally let out the breath she was holding. Oh my god, she was so cute!

Layla's eye widen with shock as her face turn a darker shade of red. Kyoya started chuckling at her expression.

"K-Kyoya! What was that for?!" Layla scolded him out of embarassment as she angrily swatted at him.

"That wasn't called for, Layla," Kyoya said as he cover his mouth with his hands.

"What are you talking about? That was totally called for!" Layla replied with a big frown on her face.

Kyoya's shoulders were shaking from him holding in his laughter. That was the first time I had ever seen him so... not stiff. I unconsciously smiled. Only Layla, huh?

* * *

**Next chapter is on the way! **

**Wish me luck on my results next week!**

**R&amp;R please and thank you!**

**Love,**

**~StormAria~**


	12. Who is that?

**I'm extremely sorry for the long disappearing act! I was having a major writer's block along with having to apply for scholarships and the likes. But I'll stop there, don't want to make a snooze fest.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC**

* * *

Mori's POV

"It's ok, Taka-kun. Mitsu-kun can keep Usa-chan, I don't mind," Ayumi smiled brightly up at me, "Besides, I told him to take good care of her!"

"But, on your birthday," I reminded her.

"Yeah, I know it's my birthday, Taka-kun, and that he really shouldn't have done that. But I'm fine with it cause Mitsu-kun is Mitsu-kun! If he was being nothing but himself, I wouldn't forgive him!" Ayumi puffed up her cheeks cutely.

I blinked at her confession. Ayumi was always so unpredictable. I ruffed her hair, happy that she thought so. She beamed up at me. She might be spoiled but I think that made her all the more charming.

"Hey, Taka-kun! I want my birthday present!" Ayumi pouted.

Present? Wait, I was suppose to get her a present? Ok, I was in trouble now. I quickly averted my eyes, pretending that I did not hear her.

"You didn't get me a present, did you?" Ayumi sighed.

She was making such a sad expression. I sat there, completely stunned. What should I do now? I was never in such a position before.

"... I'm sorry," That was all I could say as I stared guiltily at the ground.

The next moment, Ayumi was grinning from ear to ear. She poked my cheek as she usually did. It was weird the first time she did that but after awhile, I got used to her antics.

"I knew you wouldn't! Ah, well. That just means I can request something from you, right?" Ayumi asked staring at the calm blue sky.

I thought it over. What could she possibly want from me? After a few seconds, I nodded. Ayumi cheered out loud and jumped up and down in front of me a few times. I simply smiled.

"Taka-kun, promise me you'll take care of Mitsu-kun. Not because of your families' past. I want you to protect him from himself because you truly care for him, ok?" Ayumi pointed to me.

"What do-?" I was cut off by her.

"Pinky promise, Taka-kun!" Ayumi demanded.

I sighed and shrugged my shoulders. We linked our pinkies and smiled.

"I promise, my princess," I bowed infront of her and smirked.

After doing the deed, I shivered. That was definitely not how I usually do things but I had seen it before. Somewhere. I swore at that moment that I would never ever do it again.

"Eww, Taka-kun! Be yourself! Yourself!" Ayumi stuck out her tongue and ran away from me.

"It's a promise, ok?" she called back to me.

I smiled and gave her a little wave. Ayumi's smile brightened at that small gesture. She left me with a skip in her step. But what did she mean by 'protect him from himself'? I contemplated at my own thoughts. Oh, well.

That night I had a bad feeling deep in my gut. I found myself wide awake in bed, just staring at my ceiling. Ayumi, what was wrong? Save Mitsukuni from himself? I was very sure you were the only one that could do that.

With that bad feeling keeping me up, I walked out of my house and went next door, the Tomoyuki residence. It was so quiet. Where were all the guards?

"W-what the?" I stood there stunned by what was infront of me.

I felt my heartbeat racing fast. My muscles were all locked into place. I could not move.

Badump badump badumpbadumpbadump.

Blood had painted everything. The walls. The furniture. The floor. There were fallen bodies everywhere I looked. The expression on the faces of the corpses were all frozen in surprise.

I fell on my butt and yelled out in horror.

* * *

"AYUMI!" I sat up panting in bed.

I looked around disorientated. I was in my room. The alarm clock on my nightstand showed that it was still two in the morning.

I was drenched with sweat. The shirt I wore clung onto my back. Realising I was safe, I took deep breaths to calm myself. I placed my hand to my heart, feeling the rush of blood slow down to a steady rhythm.

"Ayumi..." I mumbled.

It was a memory from when I was eight. The day Mitsukuni and I lost our bestfriend. Her whole family was slaughtered. The culprits were never found. And to make matters worse, Ayumi's body was not among the corpse.

She was kidnapped by the murderers, it would have seemed. But with no ransom note or contact from the kidnappers, there was no lead. After two years, the police stopped searching for her. She was gone.

But Mitsukuni and I never stopped believing that she was indeed still alive. We were going to reunite with her no matter what. And losing her made me understand what she said. Save him from himself.

Mitsukuni took the lost hard. He would not eat, not even sweets or cake. He would not sleep, like he suddenly had insomnia or something. He did not laugh, did not give out a reaction for the longest time. He was a broken shell. And I had pieced him back together.

Did you know you were not going to be a part of our lives, Ayumi?

Feeling shakened, I doubt I could fall back to sleep again. Standing up, I changed my shirt and headed out of my house. I needed fresh air. Lots of fresh air.

I found myself in the playground the three of us used to play in. So many fond memories lingered here. I sat on the bench and stared at the dark sky. I sighed loudly.

Where are you, Ayumi? You could not be dead. I refuse to acknowledge that possibility. Is nine years not long enough for you to stay invisible to us? If so, hurry back to us!

"Taka-chan, what are you doing here? We're going to be last for school," Mitsukuni's voice greeted me.

Without me noticing, the Sun was already high in the sky. Surprised, I had apparently been spacing out far longer than I had expected.

"Sorry, Mitsukuni. Let's get back to the house,"

* * *

Layla's POV

"Why on Earth do I have to wear that?" I asked with a disgusted look on my face.

I held up the get up with the tip of my fingers as though they would burn me. My frown deepened further when I noticed the short black wig in Kyoya's hands.

"We wanted to try something... new," Kyoya smirked mischieviously.

"I don't see why I have to cosplay at all," I argued as I glared up at him.

Just then, Princess timidly stepped closer towards me. She seemed uncharacteristically nervous for some reason.

"Uh, Layla? Well, this was the deal Kyoya and I struck for tending to your wounds," Haruhi whispered softly into my ear.

"W-what?! That's the price I have to pay?" my eyes widen with realisation.

That treatment was about two weeks ago, when Ranka ran his belt on my back for neglectance. The wounds were completrly healed by now.

Oh, Kyoya, that sly guy. What was he playing at? He was so devious, it was not really hard to read his motives once you got to know him.

This must be profitting him in some way. I narrowed my eyes at him while he continued to smirk as he fixed his glasses.

"But I fail to see the connection with this black tie attire. Why do I have to dress as a guy?" I asked, my voice was laced with annoyance, "They all know I'm a girl."

"We had a survey, Layla. And the ladies have spoken. All of them wanted to see you as a guy host and not a hostess for your debut!" Tamaki offered cheerfully.

He seemed a bit too happy about this. I did not like where this was going. And what was that suppose to mean? Why would they need to make a survey?

"What do you mean by 'debut'? Isn't this just a one time thing?" I asked for confirmation.

"Nope, it's not, Lay-chan! You're going to be a permanent hostess," Honey jumped up and down infront of me.

A permanent hostess? What? Did I have to attend to some guys just like how the host club did? What was going on?!

"No way, I am not going to do that!" I yelled.

"Well, it's not like you have a choice," Kyoya interjected, crossing his arms.

I growled angrily at him, ready to pounce. But Mori stopped me by placing his large hand ontop of my head. Surprised, I looked up at him.

"Mori-senpai...," I mumbled his name.

"Ayu-," he stopped himself short while wearing a depressed expression, shook his head dismissively and started again, "Layla,"

"What is it, Mori-senpai?" I asked him warily.

Did he almost call me 'Ayumi'? I suddenly felt a stabbing sensation in my heart. Why was I affected by that so much?

Mori then pointed at a crying Honey. W-what? Why?! When did he start crying?! Mori gave me a look that said 'You make Mitsukuni cry, stop him now.'

"Mitsu-kun! Why are you crying?" I panickingly asked him.

"You don't want to cosplay with us, Lay-chan!" he said it as a statement while hugging me.

I sighed at his antics. To think that old bully became this cutie here. I hugged him back as he wailled into my arms.

"Oh, my. Look what you did, Sweetie," Hikaru said as he looked at me with mocked disapproval.

"You made Honey-senpai cry!" Kaoru yelled in awe.

"Haha! You're in big trouble!" Hikaru and Kaoru both snickered as they both gave me a thumbs up.

"What did you do, Layla?" Haruhi asked, concern written all over her face.

Ugh, what do I do now? Biting my inner cheek, I pulled Mitsu's cheeks and looked at his stretched face. Oh, how cute. Fine.

"Owww! Stop that, Lay-chan," Mitsu said as he struggled to get away without hurting me.

"Okay, I'll do it," I sighed as I smiled at the guys.

"LAYLA!" an annoying voice yelled out my name from across the room.

All of a sudden, I heard warning bells ringing in my head.

My eyes widen in surprise. Oh no! Tamaki! He was running towards me. I quick stepped out of the way and he ran into the wall that was right behind me.

"L-Layla? Why did you avoid my hug?" Tamaki asked me, his voice shaking as he rubbed his sore face.

"Sorry but I take decisive action towards danger," I look down at him coldly.

"W-what?! Haruhi's my daughter so that makes me your caretaker! I'm not dangerous!" He complained.

"That's very debatable, boss," Hikaru snickered.

"Yeah, boss! You really think Layla would agree to that? Over her dead body!" Kaoru added, snickering with his brother.

"Mother, look what the devil twins are doing! They're being mean to me!" Tamaki complained to the ever so calm Kyoya.

"Well, hurry up and get changed. The ladies are going to arrive any time soon. Haruhi?" Ignoring Tamaki completely, Kyoya quickly shooed us away, showing the slightest form of amusement with our antics.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

"Ugh, I feel so weird..." I looked up to see a well dressed guy pulling at his collar, looking every bit uncomfortable.

His jet black hair covered half of his face as he dejectedly looked at the ground infront of him. In his other hand, there was a dagger in its scabbard. Why was he walking around so casually with that thing?

He looked up and noticed me. He quickly looked away and I swore I saw his face turn red. He was standing beside Haruhi at almost the same height. Who was that? And why was he here?

"Oh, come on. It's not that bad, Layla!" Haruhi said cheerfully as she apologetically smiled at him.

Wait... What?

"L-Layla! Is that you?" I ran up to the two girls, my eyes widen in astonishment, "I didn't even recognise you!"

My surprised cry got the attention of everyone in the room. Shocked expressions were plastered on all the customers' faces.

"Wahhhh~!" the ladies cried.

"Oh! Lay-chan~! You look so awesome!" Honey ran up to us and launched himself at Layla.

Though surprised, she easily caught him and gave a little spin. Seeing that, the girls cheered even louder. I spotted Mori trailing behind him and gave Layla a thumbs up.

"Mitsu-kun, that was dangerous," Layla softly reprimanded him as she peered at his smiling face.

"I'm sorry! I was just so surprised! You look amazing," Honey could not stop grinning from ear to ear.

"Yeah, sweetcakes. What happened?" Hikaru jokingly asked.

"LAY-LA-CHAN!" I saw Tamaki dash his way to the newly genderbend Layla. Or, for the day that is, Lay-san.

Layla sensing the danger of getting squash quickly manuvered her body and caused Tamaki to trip.

"Decisive action," She simply said while playfully sticking out her tongue.

Ah, I liked seeing this side of Layla. The side that was not always guarded and cold. The side that was carefree and honest. I want to keep seeing that childish side of her.

* * *

Unknown POV

It was her. She was here all along? So, it was not a wild goose chase after all? All those months spent on finding you. But what were you doing here, my dear?

"Sir, is that her?"

I gave him a curt nod and smiled.

"Have you given up on running, my sweet one that got away?" I whispered to no one at all.

* * *

**Haha! Yeah, so who could this mysterious one be? And what did he want?**

**Keep reading to find out!**

**R&amp;R PLEASE! And thank you~!**

**Ps: Fixed a sentence that has a big impact on the chapters to come**

**Love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	13. Happiness, Anger and Tears

**Hey, I'm back! It's been awhile, sorry! Just couldn't write. Nothing came to mind and I didn't want to givr you guys a halfarse job, right?**

**So I hope you like this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: OHSHC? Don't own it, sorry.**

* * *

Layla's POV

"Lay-kun, what do you stare at when you're looking through your window?" a girl named Nariko Akiyama questioned me, catching my attention.

Snapping to my senses, I found myself face to face with five eagered-looking girls. Their eyes had a glistening spark to them, which was freaking me out.

_Give us the reign this time, Freya. You don't have to deal with them._

Not again! Shut up! Shut up!

_What's wrong? Don't trust us? We're hurt._

"Lay-kun? Are you ok?" Nariko asked me, her gentle voice was laced with worry.

I snapped out of it. I stared at her, confused. Gathering my thoughts, I pulled up a small smile.

"Forgive me, Akiyama-san. I... I don't feel so well," I lowered my gaze and stared at the table in front of me.

_Come on. Believe us. Would we hurt you?_

Shut up!

I heard a chorus of dreamy sighs from the ladies. Surprised, I lifted my gaze and saw their faces inch closer to mine.

"Akiyama-san, Honda-san, Koizumi-san, Oshiro-san, Nakahara-san," I said their names in turn as I slowly pulled away, "What's the matter?"

"Ah, pardon us, Lay-kun! W-we were just mesmerized by your troubled expression," Ayaka Koizumi explained as she fanned herself, completely flustered.

The other ladies followed suit, shifting their gaze. My eyebrows twitched slightly. 'They were mesmerized by my troubled expression'? That sounded like a cheesy line in a cliche novel.

Before I could say anything, I heard a sudden boom and the double doors leading to the music room burst open, revealing a little girl.

Huh...?

What was this kid doing here?

I watched as Princess and the rest of the host members crowded around her, in awe, which they quickly recovered from. They started introducing themselves to the little girl with the grace of hosts.

"Please excuse me, my ladies," I asked to be pardoned.

Not waiting for their answer, I walked to my window and sat there staring out at the lawn. Nothing was out of the ordinary for awhile now, which got me on edge. Make your next move already.

_Why aren't you happy that there isn't anything happening?_

Because it calls for a big plan on their part and there was nothing I could do until then.

_So? You worry too much. We will be here to protect you if and when they come._

Like you said, I do not trust you. And I will never trust you so would you shut up already?

_Fine, be that way, Freya. We'll stay quiet like you ask but-_

"It's a reverse harem!"

HUH?

* * *

"This kid needs a brainwash," I crossed my arms in front of my chest, staring at the sleeping form of the little girl.

_Wash her tongue with soap is more like it, we think._

I ignored the voice in my head as Princess shrugged her shoulders and patted the brat's head. I had already changed back into my normal clothing and discarded the black wig since we had other problems to face.

"Can you believe her maids would read her those kind of stories at her age? I mean, shoujo mangas of all things! Why not Harry Potter, or Eragon for that matter?" I ranted to Princess in disdain.

"Well, what done is done. Nothing we can do about it now," Princess replied, "But she is a darling when she's asleep."

"Well, whatever. What I really can't believe is that this little kid is related to Nekozawa-senpai," I replied, looking every bit as bored.

Nekozawa was 18 years old and crazy about dark magic. I was surprise to find out that his black hair was actually a wig and his natural hair colour was actually blond. I guess everyone has a secret or two that they did not want others to figure out.

I saw Princess giving me a small smile from the corner of my eyes. She was being so carefree with this kid. What was I going to do with her?

"Layla! I need to get some flashlights, want to come with?" I heard a timid Kaoru running up to us.

"Flashlights? What would you need flashlights for?" I asked, confusion written plainly on my face.

"They're for Nekozawa-senpai," He said as he held my hand and pulled me away from Princess.

"Wait, that doesn't answer anything, Kaoru," I complained.

"Please just come with me. You'll find out soon enough. Haruhi, I'm borrowing Layla for a moment, ok? See you!" not waiting for an answer, Kaoru called Princess over his shoulder and continued pulling me along.

"I'll be right back, Haruhi," I called out to her, knowing there was no way of getting out of it now.

It was Kaoru. No one could say no to Kaoru. Unless they were really heartless. And I fancied thinking that I was not that heartless.

* * *

Haruhi's POV

"Have fun, Layla, Kaoru!" I waved with a smile at the distant backs of both of them.

Yeah, bring her around, Kaoru. Freya was still sort of trapped in her shell. I really hoped that Kaoru could snap her out of it.

Turning around, I spotted Hikaru leaning on a wall, alone. He was staring intently at the direction I had previously looked, with a dark clouded expression. I wonder what he was thinking about?

* * *

Mori's POV

I watched as Layla was dragged off by Kaoru. She was smiling, that was nice. Refreshing.

"Hey, wait for-!" I noticed Mitsukuni running towards them.

I quickly grabbed him, tuck him under my arm and walked back to the club room. Layla and Kaoru should have some time alone. Who knew? It might lift that dark cloud above her head.

"Takashiii~!" Mitsukuni whined loudly as he struggled to get away from me.

I guess he could not see the same thing I saw. He was not able to read the situation too. Which meant that this was going to be an earful for me. I sighed under my breath.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

"I didn't know there were so many types of flashlights at a convenience store!" I exclaimed softly in awe, staring at the shelf full of choices in front of me.

There were different colours and size. They even had different brightness, for goodness' sake! How was I going to choose from this array of flashlights?

Suddenly, I heard an almost inaudible chuckle beside me. Turning my attention to Layla, I realised the chuckle came from her. Her hand was covering her mouth and her shoulders quaked.

"H-hey! What are you laughing at?" I asked her even though I knew she was laughing at me.

Feeling embarassed that I was sure my face was red, I sheepishly scratched my cheek and looked away. Give me something else to look at! Anything but her. How embarassing.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! But seriously, what was that reaction?" She wiped a tear from her eyes as she patted my shoulder in apology.

"That wasn't very nice, Layla," I bit my lip and stared at the floor, "I didn't get to really look around the last time we went to a store like this."

She gave me a dry stare, like she was saying 'Yeah, I'll believe that when pig's fly'. I stared at the ground, pouting. Why did she not believe me? I was busy keeping track of Haruhi and Tamaki that time. They were so close, it was distracting.

"All right already. Will you help me choose or not?" I asked her, slightly irritated.

"Yes, yes. Hmm... Now, this one is good as the light...," Layla stopped midsentence and quickly turned around with a frown.

She was looking hard at something. Then, her eyes lost their tension and she turned back to the flashlights.

"Huh, what's wrong, Layla?" I cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Oh, it's nothing. I just felt like someone was glaring at us. Maybe it was just my imagination. Anyways...," she continued as though nothing happened.

I glance sideways, suddenly feeling paranoid. But then again, this was Layla, she was always cautious. I shoke my head to shrug off the remnants of paranoia and listen intently to her explanations.

* * *

Unknown POV

It seemed like they were having fun. No matter, soon all of that 'fun' will disappear with you. The perparations were underway and then it will finally be time to execute.

I hope you had already said your goodbyes, my princess. I would not want you to leave with an ice cold heart.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

It did not take us too long to get five different types of flashlights with different light intensity. They were all different colours too! But I doubt Layla meant to choose them by colour, though it still made me happy.

"Shall we head back to Ouran?" Layla asked, glancing sideways at me as we walk side by side out of the convenience store.

I pursed my lips in thought. Do I want to go back to Ouran this early? Or, do I want to spend a little more time with Layla? The choice was a no brainer. Besides, the guys could wait few more minutes.

Just then, I saw an ice-cream vendor. I definitely want ice-cream now. But how do I tell Layla that?

"Layla...," I furrowed my eyebrows in worry.

I mean, she could easily turn the offer down. And that would hurt.

She looked at me with a raised eyebrow. I quickly turned away in embarassment. Why was it so hard to ask if we could get ice-cream?! Why was Hikaru not here? He could have easily persuade Layla for ice-cream.

"Hey, Kaoru? Are you ok?" She asked with confusion and concern written all over her face.

"Ah, well. I kind of want ice-cream. Is it alright with you?" I scratched my cheek, embarassed.

"Oh... But... I left Haruhi for awhile now...," I heard Layla mumble under her breath.

"Oh, ah... Yeah, that's right. It was stupid of me to suggest. Let's just head back to Ouran, ok?" I quickly answered and started to sped up out of annoyance to myself.

What was I? An idiot? Of course, Layla would not leave Haruhi for so long, not that I knew why. They were unseparable. And here I was bashfully thinking that I could spend a bit of time with Layla. I mentally kicked myself for my own stupidity.

"Hey, wait up! Kaoru!" Layla easily caught up to me and lightly pulled my shirt.

I instantly stopped to face her. She had a bewildered expression on. I must have really shocked her. But then, she smiled.

"Come on, let's get that ice-cream," She said as she tugged on my sleeve, pulling me towards the ice-cream vendor.

"Huh? Layla? Let's just go back. I mean, it's ok," I reflectively answered.

Layla turned back to me with a pout. What was this? Was I imagining it?

"I don't want to see that hurt expression on your face, Kaoru. Besides, ice-cream sounds great!" her pout turned into a grin.

As though it was contagious, I started smiling too. Some time alone with Layla. And, we get ice-cream as a bonus. That sounded like heaven.

* * *

Layla's POV

We sat on a nearby bench, eating our ice-cream in comfortable silence. The sweet taste of chocolate ice-cream filled my tastebuds. It had been a long time since I ate ice-cream.

"Yum!" I exclaimed happily with a grin on my face.

Kaoru looked my way at my declaration. Covering his mouth, he started to laugh. I tilted my head to the side in confusion.

"Haha! Your face! You have ice-cream on your face!" he laughed, pointing at my face.

Embarassed, I wiped my face with the sleeve of my shirt. Suddenly, Kaoru grabbed my arm and pulled it to him. I was not expecting it at all. But I managed to stop myself from twisting his arm.

"Hey, don't do that! You'll dirty your clothes!" he said distressed.

"Then what am I suppose to do?" I asked with furrowed eyebrows and a frown.

"Huh, what indeed?" Kaoru said, dramatically thinking while crossing his arms.

But by doing so, he ended up getting ice-cream on his hands.

"Ah no! Layla, hold this!" Kaoru exclaimed in a panic.

He handed me his ice-cream to hold and pulled out a few pieces of tissues from the plastic bag full of flashlights. When did he buy tissues?

He wiped his hands clean but the ice-crean was still sticky. I heard him sigh loudly as he looked at his hands.

"I guess it's pay back for laughing at me," I smiled at him.

"Haha...," he replied sarcasticly, "Here, take some of the napkins."

I tried to hand his ice-cream back and take the tissue from him but it was a mess. We did not know what or how to pass the things. We ended up bursting with laughter.

"We're a mess," I said, laughing.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious!" Kaoru said as he held up his full hands for me to see.

Just meeting our eyes made us laugh harder. I could not remember the last time I laughed that much.

"Here," Kaoru said as he helped wipe the melted ice-cream off my cheek.

"Thanks," his touch felt ticklish, "Did you get everything?"

"Ah, no, I didn't... Of course I did! Who do you think I am?!" Kaoru burst out humorously.

"Yeah, alright. Let's finish this and clean up," I grinned.

* * *

Hikaru's POV

What was taking those two so long? It has been an hour! How hard was it to buy some flashlights?

Suddenly, the doors to the music room opened and in came Kaoru and Layla.

"We're back!" they said simultaneously.

They looked at each other and burst out laughing. What? Layla was laughing? That had got to be the first time I heard it!

But... Why was she laughing with Kaoru? I caught myself getting angry. Stop it! You are not jealous of Kaoru! Why would you be jealous of Kaoru? They were just friends!

"Let's start the training already!" Renge, the club 'manager' claimed with a sigh.

Why was Renge even here? Not like the host club needed any managing from her anyway. Well, whatever.

* * *

Nekozawa's POV

Murderers! All of them were murderers! The Sun! The light! It was too strong! I was going to die! Beelzenef! Help me! But I must! For Kirimi!

"He really can't stand that much light? It's just from a flashlight, no less," the girl, Fujikawa said.

"Hey, at least he's trying," Fujioka gently nudged her.

Yes, I could not possibly give up now! I wanted to be by my little sister's side! Even if I had to sacrifice my life in the process!

"Ok, let's continue," those dreadful words came crushing down on my spirit as the bubbly girl, Renge was her name, thrusted a light source to my face. and told me tk be prince-ly.

How long could I last this time? Endure. Endure. ENDURE!

* * *

Hours later, I was finally given the go ahead to see Kirimi. The instant she stepped into the room, she ran into Tamaki Suoh's arms. Suoooooh! I felt the anger emiting from my body as my eyes fell unto the scene in front of me.

"Big brother!" Kirimi yelled gleefully in Suoh's arms.

Was he going to let go of her or not?! Feeling my rage, Suoh quickly put Kirimi down. That was sightly better. But not by much.

"No, Kirimi-chan, I'm not your brother. He is," Suoh said, pointing at me.

That was my cue! I could not mess this up. This was for Kirimi!

"Hello, Kirimi. I am Umehito Nekozawa, your older brother," I greeted her.

She stared blankly back at me. So far so good, I guess.

"This here is Beelzenef!" I introduced him with a grin on my face.

She screamed and ran to Suoh.

"No, no! He's scary! He's not my brother! You are!" she wallowed in his arms.

I felt my heart breaking. What was I lacking? Why did she only have eyes for Suoh, when I, Umehito Nekozawa, was her true brother?

"No, Kirimi-chan. Nekozawa-san is your brother," Suoh calmly informed her.

"No! My brother is a prince! You're a prince! Not him!" She continued her plea to Suoh as her arms tightened around him.

A prince? Yes, I definitely was not a prince. I, who loved dark magic and despised the murderous light, was no prince.

"Listen to me, Kirimi-chan. He is your beloved older brother. Shouldn't you welcome him as you had welcomed me?" Suoh flashed her one of his host smiles and I could imagine the stars surrounding him.

But Kirimi, having just had her heart broken, ran out the room. Her eyes were stained with tears. Did I make her cry? I should go after her! But... No, that was not right. I was not the brother she wanted or deserved.

"Kirimi-chan!" Suoh's voice rang but he did not move from where he stood.

I was at a lost. What do I do now? Let the chips fall where they may? It was plain and simple that I would never be recognised as a brother by Kirimi.

"What are you still doing here, Nekozawa-senpai? Are you an idiot? Go after your sister!" Fujikawa's angry voice invaded my train of thought.

But I could not. No, Suoh was obviously the right match to her prince-ly image of her older brother. The person I would never be. I could not chase after her.

"Suoh-san should run after her," I answered in a small voice to Fujikawa in defeat.

No matter what I did, I could not change who I was. And Kirimi would never want to be like me. There was no use prolonging the inevitable. We, siblings, were meant to live separate lives. I stared at the floor in disdain at the revelation.

"Are. You. An. Idiot?" I heard the frustrated voice of Fujikawa.

Surprised, I quickly looked her way. She was advancing towards me in a fit of anger. And I was bolted to the spot by her anger-filled eyes.

"You're not going to chase after her?!" Fujikawa yelled as she stood in front of me, balled up her fist and punched me squarely in face.

The shock of getting punched made me fall to the ground. She was very strong. My jaw felt like it would break off as I reflectively held my cheek. I had never been punched before.

The now enraged Fujikawa sat on my chest and pulled me up by the collar. Her face was inches away from mine and the expression on it was pure rage. Scared out of my wits, I swallowed loudly.

"Layla! Get off of hi-," Hikaru and Kaoru started to pull her but was cut short.

"You idiot! What is wrong with you? You have a chance to be with your sister! And you're going to just throw that away? Just like that!" She angrily shook me.

I did not answer her. I guess I was throwing away a chance but Kirimi did not want me anyway. What was the point? I turned my gaze away from Fujikawa.

"You're lucky and you don't even know it! I would do anything to get a chance like that! I would even sell my soul to the devil if I could only have one more day with my family! Do you understand?" her grip on my collar tightened with every word.

A drop of water fell to my cheek. And then, another. Fujikawa...? Was she crying? She was, wasn't she? That was right. She was living with Fujioka's family now. Her family was gone.

"Kirimi-chan is right here! And you won't chase after her? So, what now? You're going to pretend that you don't have a sister when you do?! Don't you know it hurts to see something like that, for someone like me?!" she continued to yell in my face and I let her.

She was right. Completely right. I must have been disgusting in her eyes. I looked at her and slowly reached out to stop her hands from shaking me. Surprised, she stopped talking and stared at me with an awestruck expression.

"I understand. Thank you, Fujikawa-san," I said as I looked up at her tear-stained face.

I felt her body tremble as she tried to hold back any more of her tears from falling. As though suddenly realising what happened, Hikaru and Kaoru gently got her up on her feet.

"Are you ok, Layla? Kaoru asked her, worried.

"You'll be alright, yeah?" Hikaru chimed in, his voice was also laced with concern.

"I'll chase after her, Fujikawa-san. Again, thank you," I said as soon as I got on my feet.

She nodded her head and slowly a smile formed on her face. She... She was beautiful. I felt my cheeks burning. What was this?! But before I could understand my feelings, Ootori made an observation.

"Oh, there goes Kirimi-chan. Where did that fat cat come from, I wonder?" he said, expressionlessly looking out the window.

"Huh, the Nekozawa family must really like cats," Fujioka said as she stood beside Ootori, also gazing out the window.

Kirimi? Cat? But Kirimi was afraid of animals, especially cats!

"No! Kirimi is deathly afraid of cats!" I told them as I ran out the door to save her.

I heard them running after me but I really did not care. What I cared about was Kirimi! So, just wait for me! I will be there to save you!

I arrived just as the cat started to pounce on her. Good thing I was faster. I pulled Kirimi into my arms and avoided the cat. As though realising that I was not afraid out it, the cat ran away.

"Kirimi, you're safe now. The big scary cat is gone," I cooed as I stroke her blond hair.

"B-big brother!" Kirimi hugged me as tight as her little arms would allow. Ah, Kirimi, did you finally accept me?

Eh, why was it so hot here? I was getting dizzy. My eyes. Oh no!

Suddenly, everything went black. Stupid desease striked again. Sigh... But, at least now I have Kirimi by my side.

* * *

Unknown POV

Soon, Ruby, my ice princess. Just you wait. Just a bit more and they will be able to completely thaw that beautiful icy heart of yours.

Then, killing you would be worthwhile. But for now, we wait.

Tick tock, tick tock.

* * *

**Wow, that was the longest chapter I've wrote so far! I hope you liked it! **

**R&amp;R please! Much appreciated!**

**Till next time!**

**Love,**

**~StormAria~**


	14. Slip up?

**Extremely sorry for the super long hiatus! I had a complete dry spell for months and it doesn't seem to want to let me go. Either way, chapter 15 is underway. So, I hope you can bear with me!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, not me. I do not own OHSHC**

* * *

Layla's POV

Splash. The sound of water tinkling off a table. Looking up from petting the head of a deeply asleep Honey on my lap, I saw the horrified expression playing off Tamaki's face.

"Ahh! Look what you devils did to Honey-senpai's Usa-chan!" Tamaki exclaimed in surprise.

Usa-chan? Something happened to Usa-chan? Following his eyes, I saw a toppled over tea cup and a stained Usa-chan. Oh, I guess they accidentally tipped over a cup of tea all over the pink bunny. It was not that big of a deal, they could always just wash Usa-chan.

"It wasn't our fault. Haruhi kept running away. We were just chasing after her so she could do a cosplay for us!" Hikaru and Kaoru chorused as they hugged Princess close.

Why were they being so close to Princess?! Just as I tried to get up, Honey's sudden furrowed eyebrows caught my attention. Ah, I could not move. If I did, Honey would wake up. Giving up, I sat still and continued playing with his hair.

"We do cosplays all the time!" Tamaki complained.

"We're not talking about the usual cosplay...," Hikaru interjected as he rolled his eyes.

"... But a bunny girl cosplay while disguised as a girl!" Kaoru ended.

But, Princess was a girl. I glanced at Princess. She had the exact same expression I was giving. Good, she thought the same thing. Those idiots were making Princess uncomfortble.

"Don't you want to see that too, Boss?" they said together.

"Haruhi... as a bunny girl?" Tamaki muttered as he put on a curious expression.

D-disgusting! He must be imagining her in a bunny suit right now. I felt the rage rolling off me and I bet Tamaki could feel it too. Why? Cause he cautiously turned to meet my eyes.

He was lucky that Honey was asleep. If not for Honey, he would have ran with his tail between his legs.

"Anyways, we're in huge trouble. I mean, Usa-chan was made by Honey-senpai's late grandmother for his neighbour, right?" Hikaru said nonchalantly.

"Yeah, that's right. I heard that he used to pick on her a lot so, his grandmother made the bunny as an apology. He wouldn't be happy with this," Kaoru agreed.

"Wait... If Usa-chan was Honey-senpai's neighbour's, then why does he have it?" Princess asked the boys.

"Isn't that the mystery. Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai wouldn't tell us, so we just left it at that!" Tamaki answered as if to brush the question off.

"Isn't that weird? I would have thought that Tamaki-senpai would at least pester them until you got your answer," Princess said lightly.

"Is that really how you see me, My dear Haruhi?!" Tamaki cried out in despair.

Listening in to their conversation, I guiltily gazed at Honey's sleeping face. I had never told Princess. I had not even told Honey and Mori.

_Can't blame her for asking, right? If we weren't in here with you, we would ask too_.

Shut up, it was your faults too.

_Yeah, that's true. But you're still searching, right?_

Without your help. So, shut up already.

Suddenly, I felt Honey moving. His right hand, more like it. I stopped his fist before it made contact with my face.

"Oh, you're awake, Mitsu-kun?" I asked him as I kept his balled up fist away from me.

"I'm up," he said nonchalantly as he got up.

Honey stared at the teddy bear Tamaki placed near him. Grabing it, he angrily threw it to the floor. Ah, same old Honey. He has a horrible attitude when he wakes up. Come to think of it, he remind me of Kyoya sometimes.

Honey stood up and walked to the table where Usa-chan was. He slowly picked her up and stared daggers at the now dirty Usa-chan.

"Who. Dirtied. Usa-chan?" His piercing eyes stared Tamaki and the twins down as they cowered behind the couch.

"Help us, Mori-senpai!" they screamed, scared out of their wits wih tears in their eyes.

I stood beside Mori as he said with ease, "Usa-chan wanted to drink some tea,"

Oh, that would definitely solve the problem! I watched Honey's expression change from bloodlust to extreme happiness. Mori always knew the right things to say.

"Is that so, Taka-kun? She was thirsty?" I saw the sparkles in his eyes.

Ah, that was so like Honey. Absentmindedly, I smiled and turned to Mori.

* * *

Mori's POV

"Good thinking, Taka-kun!" Layla said with a bright smile.

Taka... kun?

I stared at Layla with round eyes. Did she just...? Did she call me 'Taka-kun'? Stunned, I stared at her without her notice. She did not seem to realise her slip of the tongue. She then made her way to a bleaming Mitsukuni and patted his head.

"Hey, why don't you give Usa-chan to me and I'll clean her up for you?" Layla proposed.

"Mhmm!" Mitsukuni grinned from ear to ear, completely estatic.

Was Layla really...? I had a burning feeling that I used to just shrugged it off before, coming back stronger than ever. Was ignoring it at the beginning the wrong call? Was Layla really, truly... Ayumi?

She was, was she not? While Layla was off getting Usa-chan cleaned, I grabbed a hold on Mitsukuni.

"Mitsukuni, I need to ask you something," I informed him.

"Hmm? What's up, Taka-kun?" Mitsukuni tilted his head to one side.

"It's about Layla,"

"What about Lay-chan?" Mitsukuni's interest was perked.

"Is she... Does she know Ayumi?" I changed the course of my question at the eleventh hour.

I was not sure if Mitsukuni thought of the same thing. I needed to make sure if it was possible first. I did not want to hurt him with false hope. I watched as Mitsukuni's eyes slowly widen.

"Umm... Ah, I forgot to tell you! They were cousins," Mitsukuni jumped in front of me.

Cousins?

"Isn't that a huge coincidence? I think it's amazing!" Mitsukuni cheered.

But that did not make sense. The ones that searched for Ayumi all those years were us. Where had Layla been?

"... Is that so? That's good," I replied with a thin smile.

I did not want him to worry. If it was true, I had to ask Layla herself. Hopefully she would understand why I was asking her this.

After about an hour, Layla came barging into the club room from one of the spare rooms. No one really goes into any of those spare rooms, so it was quiet the surprise that she found a functioning dryer in the room.

"Ta-da, Mitsu-kun!" Layla held a freshly clean Usa-chan up to Mitsukuni's estatic face.

"Woah! Lay-chan! You're a miracle worker!" Mitsukuni claimed as he happily received his pink rabbit from her.

"It was nothing. The stain wasn't too difficult to get rid of," a satisfied smile adrone Layla's face as she shrugged her shoulders.

Could she really be Ayumi? The first time I met Layla, there was hardly any warmth that was so apparent from Ayumi that the very thought was not possible. At the time, Layla acted more robotically in or than one way.

However, now she had changed so drastically that she resembled Ayumi more and more as the days went by. Was it simply a coincidence? And that Layla calling me 'Taka-kun' was just something she picked up from Mitsukuni?

With my thoughts running in circles, I felt a headache coming on. Touching my throbbing head, I continued to stare curiously at Layla.

As if feeling my eyes on her, Layla glanced at me with knitted eyebrows. I quickly averted my eyes and sheepishly walked away from her. I knew I had to ask her sooner or later if I truly desire to find the truth but now was not the appropriate time.

"Umm... Honey-senpai, should you really be eating all of those sweets? Won't you get a toothache?" I heard Haruhi say in a worried voice just beside Layla.

"No way! I always remember to brush my teeth! Besides, I've never had a toothache befor- Ouch!" Mitsukuni exclaimed in pain as he dropped his fork with a clatter.

What? What happened? Did he really get a toothache? I have to check his teeth! Sprong to action, I quickly went to his side and tried to inspect his teeth. Mitsukuni slapped my hand away, covering his mouth and minutely swelling cheeks.

I did not have time for his childish antics right now! Did he or did he not have a cavity? Pinning him down on the couch, I pinched his cheeks together and pried his mouth open.

A dread feeling sunk into my heart. There it was, Mitsukuni's first cavity. I turned towards Tamaki and he nodded in understanding.

"Ahem... An announcement, my beautiful ladies. From today until Honey-senpai's cavity goes away, all sweets, cakes and the likes will be banned from the Host Club. We would humbly appreciate that you avoid eating any sugary treats to support Honey-senpai's quick recovery," Tamaki annouced to the ladies present.

Seeing the teary-eyed stunned expression on Mitsukuni's face, I knew the next few days would be torturous for him. Even so, I had to put down my foot. Though knowing that this would seem extremely harsh, it was all I could do.

Besides, I had already failed_ them both_. And being as it may that Layla might not be Ayumi, there was no other possible way to apologise. Aside from handling a heavy punishment.

Haruhi's POV

"I think Honey-senpai is going to snap," Hikaru gave his observation.

"Yeah, just look how miserable he looks with his swollen cheeks and bowed head," Kaoru added.

Hikaru, Kaoru, Freya and I were walking in the corridor to our next lesson when we saw a depressed Honey walking alone. He had a cloth tied around his head, giving him bunny ears. Just looking at him would make anyone miserable.

"You can't blame him for being miserable. He has never gone a day without some sort of sugary food in his mouth since I met him," Freya pointed out with a shrug.

"Since WE met him. 'Cause we knew him longer than the two of you," Hikaru and Kaoru chorused.

"Ah, yeah... You guys knew him longer," I heard Freya mumble under her breath as she averted her eyes.

The way Freya said that left an impression that it was not true. Did she meet Honey and Mori a lot earlier than all of us? No, that was not possible. Freya was always with me.

"Mitsukuni, give me your bag," Suddenly, we saw Mori catching up to Honey.

Turning around to face him, Honey said, "I can carry it myself."

"That's not the point," Mori said as he took ahold of Honey's bag and tipped all the contents out.

Surprisingly, an endless stream of sweets fell out. How on earth did all of those sweets fit in there in the first place?!

"Sigh... Mitsu-kun's mood is going to get even worst at this rate. Then again, I know just the reason why Mori-senpai is doing this. I just hope it boils over all right," Freya said in annoyance.

Freya loudly clicked her tougue and briskly made her way to our next class. Something must have ticked her off. And for one thing, it did not seem like the usual humdrum reaction.

I shared a meaningful glance with Hikaru and Kaoru. They had also notice the shift in Freya's mood. But whatever it was that brought the sudden change was beyond us. Either way, it and the situation with Honey played in our minds the whole day.

* * *

**Wonder what's making Freya pissed off? Me too! ^w^**

**Well, we'll just have to keep guessing till the next chapter!**

**R&amp;R please and thank you!**

**Love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	15. Ruby and Sapphire

**Hello, Readers! I'm trully sorry for disappearing again! Truly! But I'm here now and finally uploaded the next chapter! I hope you guys like it! Enjoy~!**

**Disclaimer: Sorry, OHSHC isn't mine!**

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Layla's POV

I felt a light tap on my shoulder. Clenching my fists, I managed to stop myself from grabbing the hand. Turning around as casually as I could, I faced the person.

"Ice Prin-... I mean, Fujikawa-chan," a boy's voice met my ears.

It was one of my customers that I entertain at the host club. One that visits me almost everyday. I knew a couple of things about him. He had a weak body and misses school twice a month. I did say I knew a couple things.

"Aoi-san. Is there something I can help you with?" I asked in a humdrum manner.

He awkwardly scratched the back of his head. Probably out of habit. I silently watched as his face steadily became red, as red as a tomato. Confused, I raised an eyebrow. Was he alright? This could be a potential conundrum.

"Are you feeling unwell?" slightly bothered with his reaction, I asked.

_Ahh... How dense can you be, 'Freya'?_

Do not give me that condescending tone. And that do you mean by that? Anyways, could you stop popping out of nowhere? Can you not see that I am busy?

_It's not our fault. We mean, you never let us out anymore. You weren't like this when we were in the palace, Fye._

What are you talking about?

_You breached our agreement, Fye-fye. You were suppose to continue your 'search', right? What happened to that?_

I cannot do that right now. I have a job to do. Protecting the princess, remember? The search... could wait.

_How dare you! She's been asleep long enough! Besides, do you really believe you're protecting the princess?_

What...?

"Fujikawa-chan? Fujikawa-chan? Are you in there?" Aoi's voice snapped me out of _our _conversation.

"Ah, I'm sorry. What did you say?" I said, pushing _her_ voice to the deepest corner of my mind.

I could not keep 'spacing out' infront of people while I was actually talking to _her_. They would end up noticing and that would definitely become a disaster. Or, I would be written off as crazy.

"Well, if you have a minute, I would like to have a word with you," Aoi cleared his throat.

Aoi seemed to be more tense than usual. He was even speaking formally. What was going on?

"I'm free now," I shrugged.

I watched as he fidgetted on the spot. Like he wanted to say something of utmost importance but could not find the words. As it was, I waited patiently for him to continue. Or, tried to.

"Umm... Could we talk somewhere that is... less crowded? I don't want others listening in," he said as he glanced behind me.

Turning at his cue, I spotted a visage hiding behind one of the academy's support pillars. Was that Tamaki? What was he doing there? I glared at the cowering Tamaki and agreed with Aoi proposal.

After walking a distance away, I stopped to face Aoi. I stood with my arms crossed and waited for him to start talking. His face was tinted red and he nervously scratched his head.

He opened his mouth to speak. But... I could not hear a thing. Perplexed, I tried checking my hearing but then I noticed that I could not move my hand. I could not move at all. What...?

I felt myself falling and suddenly I plunged into darkness.

* * *

Aoi's POV

"... I like you. A lot," I told her bluntly.

Ice princess did not respond to what I said. She just stared back at me with her cold eyes. Not a smile nor an expression insight.

"... What do you think about me?" I tried to pry a respond from her.

Still nothing. Puzzled, I waved my hand infront of her face.

"F-Fujikawa-san...?" I timidly called out her name.

Her eyes clouded over all of a sudden. She swayed on the spot and plummeted to the ground. Too stunned, I froze as she fell.

"Fujikawa-san!" I called after coming back to my senses.

I crouched down and shook her. Hoping with all hope that she would regain consciousness.

"Oww, oww, owww!" she suddenly exclaimed as she rubbed her head.

"Fujikawa-san, are you ok?!" I asked her with a woeful voice.

"How could you let us fall?! That hurt, you know?" She reprimanded me.

Surprised, I blurted out a quick apology. It looked like she was no where pleased with it. She started to curse me. She added vemon to her words. The heat from her words were literally burning me. But... It was not so bad.

She might be acting completely opposite as her cold ice princess self but it was just another part of her, right?

"And don't call us that name! It's not ours! It's not even hers! Our name is-," she continued yelled in an offhanded manner.

She abruptly stopped and started staring at her hands in fascination. She experimentally clenched and unclenched her hands as I watched a slow smirk forming on her usually expressionless face.

"Oh my, we're free!" She face shone brilliantly which caused my heart to pound louder and faster, just as her usual icy state caught my eye.

Not comprehending what she said, I remained silent. 'We're free'? What did that mean?

She turned to me and said cheerfully, "You, you go tell Haruhi that we're skipping classes today!"

With that abrupted order, Ice princess turned on her heel and skipped her way through the hall. Before I could say a thing, her shadow had all but disappeared.

"... We...?" I questioned the now disappeared shadow, confusion written plainly on my face.

Then, something, or rather someone, caught my eye. It was a senior from the host club on the other walkway. He was listening intently to an average looking girl. She was definitely way below Ice princess's level of beauty.

It looked like she was confessing to him. Knowing very well that the guys from the host club never accepted confessions, the girl was just wasting her time. Kind of like what I had been doing. Realising how stupid I had acted, I stared back at the place Ice princess had vanished. I was pathetic. Sadness swelled inside me.

"Aoi-san...?" a intrusive voice greeted me from behind.

"Haruhi-san," I replied simply when I realised who it was.

"Is something the matter, Aoi-san? You've been staring at the empty hall for a while now," Haruhi said as he wore a slight smile.

"And what are you doing here?" I gruffed at him.

"I'm searching for Layla. Have you seen her? Class is about to start," he asked expectantly.

I gave him a sidelong gaze. This pipsqueak hung around Fujikawa as though he was always meant to be there. Granted, they had known each other for years. But I still did not like it.

"She said she's skipping today," proud that I had information on Fujikawa before he did.

"Skipping?" I watched as he cocked up an eyebrow out of surprise.

"What did I just say? She said she was skipping. What more do you want?" I sneered, annoyed.

"Layla... Skipping...? That can't be...," I overheard Haruhi mumbling to himself.

Suddenly, he grabbed me and shook me like he lost his mind, yelling, "What was she like?!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" I gritted my teeth and shrugged his hand off of me, my annoyance was steadily increasing.

"How was Layla acting?" He spat his question in a hurry.

I would have been furious if not for that strange question. How was she acting? Well, she was definitely acting different.

"She was different than how she normally is," I said after thinking for awhile, "Why? Is that a problem?"

"Oh, no... She's awake!" Haruhi's eyes dilated in fear.

"What? Is something wrong with Fujikawa-san?" I was starting to get worried.

"Which way did she go?!" he screamed the question at me.

I automatically pointed him the way. He was not the calm, polite, free spirit I was used to. It was like he and Fujikawa made a 180 degree turn in personality.

'How could you let us fall?!', 'We're free!', 'She's awake!'... and that uncharacteristic grin of hers. Was those some sort of warning?

"I'm sorry, Aoi-san! I have to go!" Haruhi hastily waved back to me as he ran off in the direction Ice princess went.

What was going on?

* * *

Layla's POV

"Uggh..." I woke up with a throbbing headache.

My body felt as heavy as lead and my senses could be described as sluggish at best. My eyesight was still fuzzy but I knew by feel that I was laying on something soft.

Hoisting myself upright, I surveyed the room I woke up in. It was definitely familiar. Of course it was, it was the music room 3. How I got here, I had no idea. All I remembered was talking with Aoi and then everything went black.

"My head is killing me," I mumbled to myself as I rubbed my temple to soothen some of the dull pain.

I was relieved to find that the room had no inhabitants at the moment. Slowly recovering from my slumber-like state, I noticed a folded piece of paper on the coffee table in front of me with my name on it.

Reaching out for the note, I realised my hand was dyed in a sticky red liquid. Red? Was it blood? I took a whiff at my red dyed hand and confirmed that it was blood. But whose blood? I knew I was not bleeding anywhere so... Whose?

Gritting my teeth, I took the note and scanned through it, having a feeling that I knew exactly who it was from. Esspecially after seeing the blood.

_Heyya, Fye-fye!_

_Are you finally up?! Yeah, so you passed out awhile back and we took over for you! Thanks for, you know, taking a nap. We finally got to stretch our legs! Oh, and if you're wondering what we've been doing since you hit the hay, ask daddy, ok? Anyway, thanks again!_

_-Ruby_

Scrunching the note in my fist, I whipped out my phone and sped dialed General's number. Ruby often listened to his orders but... She had a way with dealing with the target. And it was never pretty. Never.

* * *

I stoicly watched as the blood and grime washed off my skin. Whose blood was it? I guessed it did not matter. General did nit give me much to go for anyway. It was not like I knew the names of all the people we killed. I must have lost the priviledge for a happy life a long time ago with all the blood we spilt.

_Yawn~! Ah, this is the Fye-fye we know and love! Stay like this and what happened before won't happen again. Oh, but do try to make an effort to remember the contract this time. Please, it's boring not being able to move._

Ruby... Was it necessary? Taking that person's life?

_Of course it was! He would have killed you, otherwise. And killing you means killing us. We wouldn't want that, right? So, stop being a stick in the mud!_

You know I cannot communicate with you when I am under, like you can. But I can always tell when you are lying or not. I wished you would not lie to me so blatantly like this.

_But what fun would that be?_

Ruby's presence disappeared as sudden as she appeared. She did whatever she liked, no matter who it hurt or made frustrated. Dismissing her presence, I continued to scrub the grime from my hands.

After awhile, the blood on my hands were completely washed away, asthough it was never there in the first place. But we, Ruby and I, both knew it will be stained again, sooner or later. And possibly with even more blood that before.

"Freya? Hey, are you here?" I heard a familiar voice called out.

"I'm here, Princess," I curtly replied.

"It is you, right?" Princess asked timidly, as she slowly approached me.

"Don't worry, I'm in control now," I gave her a reassuring smile.

A smile that felt as fake as it was. But knowing Princess, she would not know the difference. Probably my own fault as I did not show much expressions. As it was, it was none of her concern.

* * *

Honey's POV

Everything seemed black and white. I could not see anyone. Or, I was simply blocking them out. I hated it. I needed some colour. Some sweet, tasty colour. Colour that melted in the mouth. Was that too much to ask? No, Taka had taken away all my colours.

Should I beg for my colours back? I mean, the cavity did not even hurt anymore. It should be alright for a small piece of sweet, right? If I begged and acted cute, would he give it to me?

I watched as Takashi sat by himself, his back facing towards me. It was obvious that he was avoiding me.

"Hey, Taka-kun?" I timidly approached his impassive figure.

He did not give me a reaction. Not even a nod or a shift of his eyes. He was definitely giving me the cold shoulder.

"Can I please eat some sweets now? My cavity is all gone! I promis-," Taka pushed a freezing cold popsicle into my gaping mouth without warning.

A merciless chill assaulted my already painful mouth. It felt like the tooth was torn from the gum but I knew better than that. It was still holding on, tormenting me.

"My answer is 'no'," Taka said, his face as stoic as ever.

My anger and frustration that boiled inside me was beyond my control. I was definitely too enrage and frustrated to think straight. Before I realised it, I had already thrown an unresisting Takashi to the floor.

"Takashi, you idiot!" Embarassed and regretful for what I had done, I ran out of the clubroom.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

"Wow, that was just...," Hikaru trailed off.

"... Crazy," I finished as we both stared at each other in disbelief.

Did that really just happened? Did Honey-senpai really just threw Mori-senpai to the ground in a fit of rage? We knew he could be impatient but that was just... Explosive.

"Ahh... Why did you have to punish yourself?!" Layla knocked Mori on the head and walked out the clubroom, most likely chasing after the enrage Honey.

Her demeanor said it all. She was totally annoyed with both of them. And possibly something else. But what did she just say? 'Punish himself'?

"Ah, wait, Layla-chan!" Tamaki called out to Layla as he in turn chased after her.

"Why would Mori-senpai want to punish himself?" Hikaru asked as the door to the 3rd music room swung shut.

"Well, he was being uncharacteristically strict on Honey-senpai. Not saying that he shouldn't have," Kyoya said as a passing statement.

"No, it actually makes a lot of sense. See, Mori-senpai made a promise to protect Honey-senpai, right? When Honey-senpai got that cavity, wouldn't that also mean that Mori-senpai failed him? I believe that's what Mori-senpai is thinking about right now," Haruhi explained without a pause, though she looked disturbed.

"But why? I mean, it's not like we can stop a cavity from happening, right?" I asked no one in particular.

"No, it's my fault. I forgot to remind Mitsukuni to brush his teeth before his naps. Twice!" Mori-senpai angstily punched the floor.

His voice were layered with self-loathing. It was obvious that he thought it could be the end of the world.

"I... I couldn't keep my promise. To Mitsukuni and _her_. To Ayumi-chan!" he continued in his woeful voice.

"Ayumi-chan?" A teary voice from the entrance shakingly called out.

None of us had heard the door open as we were to consumed into listening to Mori-senpai's confession. But there was Tamaki and Honey-senpai. They were peaking in to eavesdrop. Layla was nowhere to be found.

Hikaru and I stood silently beside Haruhi as we watched Mori-senpai and Honey-senpai reconcile. We were all relieved that everything was over and done with. But something kept nagging at the back of my mind.

Where did Layla go?

* * *

Mori's POV

It had gotten late by the time I headed home. Mitsukuni left earlier with his driver. Everyone else went back awhile after. It was just me and the dark night. Suddenly, I heard a noise that seemed out of place. Slightly curious, I tracked down the sound.

Then, I realised it was Layla. And she was not alone. But more shocking, the person she was with was crawling on the ground, bleeding and trying to get away from her.

From the short distance I was away from Layla and the guy in dark clothing, I spotted the devious smirk playing on her face as she poke the tip of a dagger into her left palm. Her blood slowly tinkled down her arm. The guy conitnued to struggle away from her, asthough he could no longer walk.

"I won meow~!" Layla laughed cheerfully as she struck a cat-like pose, something I could never imagine her doing and said, "Now it's time to eat my 'mouse'."

The guy could not be any older than any of us. Barely a teenager. But he did have an air of maturity as oppose to Layla's air of sudden insanity.

All I could do was watch as she sashayed her way slowly towards the fallen teenager. Her smirk turned into a grin the closer she got to him. From the fear shining from his eyes, I knew this was not a normal game of 'cat and mouse'. Was she seriously going to kill him? If she was planning to, then I had no other choice than to stop her!

I quickly grabbed her hand that held the dagger just as she thrust forward. The tip of the dagger loomed a hair's breadth away from his face. Either from the sudden sense of relief or the amazing amount of blood lost, he fainted.

Surprised, Layla freed herself from my grasps and jump a few feet away. She looked right and left, probably to determining whether or not I was the only one around. After she was satisfied with what she saw, she tilted her head to one side.

"Are you the calvary? Just you? Man, they're really underestimating us," Layla looked up at the dark sky in annoyance.

She continued to toy with her dagger while she assessed me. The way she was holding it suggest that she was relax but seeing her eyes, they demand alertness.

"Layla," I tried saying her name which felt like a foreign language with the stranger infront of me.

"Oh... You know Sapphire," Layla narrowed her eyes in boredom and sighed, "Well, we're not 'Layla'."

I took a minute to process what she said. But even after that minute, I still did not understand what she meant.

"What are you talking about, Layla?" I said, slightly confused.

"Urgh! No one seems to understand that we're not 'Layla' or 'Freya' or 'Sapphire'! That's not our name! It's Ruby and you can say that Layla and us are 'sisters', is that too hard to understand?!" The person who was not the people she listed exploded in a fit.

"Now, if you would excuse us, we have to send this one away," the girl named Ruby grabbed the unconscious guy and disappeared before I could blink.

What had just happened?

* * *

**And that's it for this chapter!**

**I hope you guys liked it!**

**Do R&amp;R, ok? Reviews are much welcomed and appreciated~! ^w^**

**Till next time! See ya!**

**Love always**

**~StormAria~**


	16. Princess and Freya

**I'm back after a super long hiatus! I hope I still have readers. This is the longest chapter I have ever wrote so I hope you guys like it! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC!**

* * *

Layla's POV

I could not believe what I was hearing. Why was this happening? It did make perfect sense if I thought rasionally but why on Earth did I have to agree to it?

General Fujikawa, Princess and I were in Karuizawa. The place was still the bustling town it has ever been. As for now, it was a safe place for the princess, filled with guards all around, yet out of sight.

But only for now - we were still the ones intrusted with her protection. Not to mention how difficult it would be to maintain her safety in such a place for a long period of time, going without notice. Ouran was the ideal place. With that said, why were we here now? To solve my _problem._

"Why do I have to let her out? You both know she's a psychopath!" I blew up a fit with a deep frown on my face.

"Come on, Freya. She's not going to cause the end of the world," Princess pretended to scoff as she tried to console me with a strained smile.

She flinched, remembering every time Ruby came out for fun. Even Princess knew how destructive Ruby could get. So, it was easy to understand my reluctance.

"She keeps getting out by herself. We can't have that, Freya. It's disrupting your duty. And my conscience," General said grimly.

"You know she hates it when you call me that. But, besides that, what does he have to do with it!" I continued my complaint, knowing very well that I could not win this argument.

"Because he's the only one that can coat her out without too much trouble and he's the only one that she'll listen to," General said for the umpteenth time since yesterday.

General sighed in exhaustion. It seemed that we were more than he could handle at the moment. Which I was not complaining as it had been awhile since we could argue like this. But even so, I could not agree to letting that psychopath out _and _having to see _him _again on the same day!

"Well, I'm off. Princess, have a great time here while you work without worry. There are guards everywhere and they'll protect you when Freya's dealing with Ruby," General relayed as he walked away from us, never turning back.

"What?! You're leaving?!" I exclaimed at his rapidly retreating back.

He replied with a curt wave and left us in front of the bed and breakfast Princess chose to work at during all this hassle. It was a decent looking place to say the least but the thing that completely drew me in was the magnificent grand piano in the middle of the dining and living area. It was slick black, as most pianos were.

Just looking at it reminded me of the time Tamaki had played for me so long ago. I believed that was when I finally decided to really trust the host club members with Princess. Before that incident, I was intolerant of his childish antics and promptly gave him the cold shoulder. There were also a big chance that I would have probably killed him before, with my attitude from that time.

But, I suppose I had changed quite a lot, not that I would admit that to the guys. And the fact that I had changed meant that Ruby had changed too. And probably in the most annoying and frightening way possible. She was gaining more control over the takeovers and we did not know what that meant for me and the people involved with me. I could actually dissappear at the rate she was going.

That would surely cause havoc.

And so, that was why we were here. A long's way away from Ouran, as to not blow our cover. It was also the reason why we did not simply return to the palace. What a disaster that would have been.

But why was I thinking of the guys?

Shaking my head, I told myself that it was normal to think of people during an ordeal. Especially something like this.

"Welcome, welcome! You two must be the new recruits! Ranka told me about you," A bubbly man in woman's clothing approached us.

And our 'vacation' began.

* * *

Tamaki's POV

"Ok, men! We're not here for sight-seeing! We came to see Haruhi and Layla," I excitedly told them as we landed in Karuizawa.

"But why?" Hikaru whined loudly as he harshly ruffled his hair.

"Yeah, you know Haruhi's not going to be happy with this. Not to mention what Layla would think," Kaoru added, looking less thrilled than I would have hoped.

"Tama-chan, you might have bitten more than you could chew this time. Lay-chan will probably hang you as compensation," Honey warned me, which was accompanied by a nod from Mori.

I felt an involuntary shiver run down my spine at the mention of 'Layla' and 'compensation' in the same sentence. Just closing my eyes, I could already imagine the murderous look on her face. This might be a death wish but I could not stand being away from the both of them.

Maybe it was because a father could never stand to be away from his daughters? Yes! That must be it. Besides, it was the holidays! If they had to work, at least they could have fun with us!

"Let's go! Let's go!" I pushed open the doors as I could not wait to see my two girls anymore with that thought in mind.

Behind me, I could hear the deep sighs from the guys as Kyoya mumbled, "He never listens."

"Welcome to-," a honey coated voice greeted us, but stopped short and continued in surprise,"What are you guys doing here?"

It was Haruhi! And she was dressed in a pristine white apron with light yellow ruffles, a pink short sleeve shirt and jeans underneath. Her short hair was pushed back with a bandana of the same light yellow colour. She looked like a Japanese doll! How incredibly cute!

With hearts in my eyes, I ran to hug her, all the while shouting out her name. I might have made quite a ruckus. The next thing I knew was a familiar voice shouting Haruhi's name and the hurried sounds of footsteps.

From the top of the stairs, stood a frantic-looking Layla in the same attire Haruhi was wearing. Her long black hair cascaded artistically around her shoulders. She looked stunning. Her hands though were awkwardly held close together, as if they were bound. Upon closer inspection, they actually were, in handcuffs no less. Why were they in handcuffs, I wonder.

Layla's eyes travelled from face to face, seeking for Haruhi. After making sure that she was fine, Layla let out a sigh of relief. But the moment her abnormally round eyes laid on us, a scowl presented itself on her face. Ha ha ha, she did not look pleased to see us.

"What. Are. You. Guys. Doing. Here?" with every poison-coated word, Layla swiftly made her way down the steps in an unhurried fashion.

The cuffs bounding her hands tinkled with every step she took, making her seem more intimidating than usual. And the glare she flashed at us, me in particular, could easily make me cower in my boots. Layla was so furious that the air around me felt like it was pulsing with static.

I swallowed hard. Even if I wanted to run with my tail between my legs, I could not. It was asthough my feet had glued themselves to the floorboard.

"Now, now, Layla. You're scaring the snort out of Tamaki," Kyoya chided Layla with a pat on the head as she stood firmly in front of me, practically baring her fangs.

"Then, pray tell. What are you doing here?" Layla visibly twitched with aggitation.

Finding my voice, I said, "I wanted to see my little girls," as I hid pointedly behind Mori's sturdy back.

"We're not your little girls, senpai," Haruhi interjected with a sigh.

"B-b-but I'm your father!" I bellowed.

"So, why are you guys working at this bed and breakfast anyway, Haruhi, Layla?" Hikaru interjected, completely ignoring me as he and Kaoru took a short tour around the dining-living area.

"Yeah! You could be having fun with us instead, you know!" Honey grinned from over Mori's shoulder with his dear Usa-chan in hand.

"Mitsu-kun, Mori-senpai" Layla exclaimed.

Seeing them gave Layla a 180 degree change in demenour. Which means, she smiled. Why would she not smile like that to me? Like the time I played for her. She has such a sweet smile then and her eyes were filled with a child's curiousity. So cute!

Haruhi loudly cleared her throat, calling me back to reality just in time for me to see the blunt disgust on Layla's face. W-w-what?! Could she read my mind? COULD THEY BOTH? I could feel the heat filling my face just thinking about it.

"Hey, Layla. Why are you in handcuffs?" Kaoru peered curiously at Layla's face as she noticably flinched at the mention.

"Uh... Erm...," Layla hesitated.

* * *

Hikaru's POV

Layla's eyes darted to every which way. She was definitely avoiding our gaze. I had never seen Layla so flustered before. Which just proved to fuel our curiousity even more.

"Just tell them, Layla. It's no use in hiding it since they're here," Haruhi said with a smile.

"Haruhi," Layla furrowed her eyebrows in disbelief.

"It's okay, you know! They'll understand," Haruhi tried to reassure Layla with a pat on her shoulder.

I did not think it really work. Layla was still staring at us with worry written on her face. But at last, she opened her mouth to say something.

"I h-have-,"

"Haruhi, Layla! Who are your friends?" the owner of the bed and breakfast interupted, holding unto both Haruhi's and Layla's shoulder with affection.

Layla glared behind her. All the hesitation and worry ebbed away, replaced with great annoyance. Actually, worse than that. She seemed like a different person.

"Don't put you filthy old man hands on us," Layla said with much venom.

"Lay-chan? Are you ok?" Honey asked with worry.

"L-l-Layla, don't say that!" Haruhi stuttered, her eyebrows twitching.

"We don't take orders from you, Prin-. What the?" Layla had raised her hand to strike the bed and breakfast owner when she glanced at her wrists.

It looked like she just realised that she was wearing handcuffs. But was she not the one to put them on herself? She was all kinds of weird today.

"Handcuffs...? Hey, Princess! What's this about? You can't tell me that Fye-fye slapped these on us?" Layla cornered Haruhi.

Princess? Mori and I both move to stand between Layla and Haruhi, the way Layla was cornering Haruhi was unsettling. What was Layla thinking? Haruhi was Layla's childhood friend. She would never intimidate Haruhi like that. And who the hell was 'Fye-fye'.

"Layla, back off. You're towering over Haruhi," I stared down at the menacing shorty in front of me.

"Huh?! Who are you, punk?" Layla yanked my collar, her eyes filled with disgust.

Wait, what? Layla?

"Stop it, whoever you are," Mori steadily requested.

"Hey, you're that calvary guy," Layla noted, looking awed.

Calvary guy. That sounded weird. When did Mori meet this version of Layla?

"Stop it now. You know what handcuffs means to Freya," Haruhi said with authority to the angry Layla.

"Urgh, Stop calling her that! Her name is Sapphire, Princess! You know that," Layla, or the person calling out, yelled at Haruhi, letting go of me, most likely out of reflex.

No, she was definitely not Layla. Layla cared about Haruhi more than her own life. And she would never call me a punk. This person in front of us was nothing like Layla. So, who was she and what happened to the Layla we knew? And who was Freya?

"Sigh... Yes, we know what handcuffs means. But they're coming off the moment _he _gets here!" The other Layla calmed down, "Oh, And Princess, help us braid our hair. It's annoying."

"Haruhi, who is that?" Kyoya asked, his eyes sparked with curiousity, which was not really a rare thing when it came to Layla.

I bet all of us was wondering the same thing. I mean, this could not possibly be Layla. The Layla that was not good at fighting back when I called her short. Or, the kind Layla that strokes Honey's head when he sleeps. Not even the Layla that would do anything to protect Haruhi.

"Her name is Ruby," Haruhi replied with a troubled smile.

"She's your Layla's, my Freya's- err, Sapphire's other half," Haruhi corrected herself when Ruby stared daggers at her.

"Was... Sapphire, Layla's real name?" I asked, still perplexed.

"Yes," Ruby firmly answered for Haruhi.

The smile playing on Ruby's face was more cheerful than any I had ever seen on Layla's. It bothered me to no end. But I could do no more than accept this impossible condition.

"N-now that, that's settled! I'm sorry to say but there is only one room left that is available," the owner interjected.

WHAT?!

"It's ours!" Kaoru and I yelled in unison.

"No way! It's mine," Tamaki protested.

We both stared at him, the sparks of competition ignited. I knew his was on fire too. We both knew. There was going to be a fight.

"Oh, goody! A competition for the last room! And it will be... A REFRESHING BATTLE!" The owner suggested, or well, insisted.

"You're on, Boss!"

"We won't go easy on you, Boss!" Kaoru added.

"Hah, just the way I like it," Tamaki retorted.

We were all definitely fired up for the battle. And we were willing to do anything to win!

... Which we ended up doing.

* * *

Layla's POV

Ugh, what a horrible night. My shoulders were stiff and my hands were cramping up. Sleeping in handcuffs would have to be one of the most uncomfortable feelings in the world. That was when I noticed that I had my hair in a braid. Which only meant one thing. _Ruby._

"Haruhi! Haruhi!" I shook Haruhi's shoulders with much difficulty.

She grunted in her sleep and reluctantly gave a stretch before she rolled over and went back to sleep. I thought I heard her mumble, "Five more minutes,".

Blowing a stray hair from my face, I continued to shake her awake. She cranked one eye open, checking who disturbed her. She looked at my face down to the braid of my hair. Suddenly, her eyes widen, completely alert. She scrambled her way out of bed and stood a distance away from me.

"What do you want?" was the first thing that came out of her mouth, she eyes were cold.

"Haruhi... It's me, Freya," I replied, a bit hurt by her question and how cold her eyes were.

She looked like a deer caught in headlights. Not that I could blame her. Just from her reaction, it confirmed my suspicion that Ruby came out yesterday.

"She didn't _do_ anything, did she?" I asked in a small voice.

Haruhi let out a sigh of relief. She relaxed hearing that question. Now she knew for sure that it was me she was talking to, and not Ruby.

"No, she didn't do anything. She was well behaved for once," Haruhi shook her head with a soft smile.

"... You don't have to lie, Haruhi," I said, "Just tell me what happened."

"Huh? No, really! Ruby behaved! She silently watched the guys' 'Refreshing Battle' which I have to say, was really unnecessary. I mean, they all have summer homes here. The most Ruby did yesterday was play around with the chains on the handcuffs," Haruhi explained.

How suspicious. Then again, Ruby might be excited to be seeing him. It had been almost a year since they had seen each other. Oh, but that did not stop me from hating him. And how I hate him!

After getting ready, Haruhi and I headed downstairs for work. Surprise surprise, everyone was here. Did they not have anything better to do?

"You guys are here again?" I asked out of reflex, annoyance lacing my words.

All of them stared warily at me. Did Princess really tell me the truth? Or, was she simply sugar coating it, like she always does?

"Lay-chan! You're back!" after a moment's hesitation, Honey dove towards me.

"Mitsu-kun!" I called his name in surprise.

Even with my hands bound together, I easily caught the little sweetheart. When I took a glance at his face, he was already crying. I guess my changing into someone else scared the heck out of him.

"Hey, hey, what's with the tears?" I wiped his tears away with my thumb but they kept falling.

I glanced around for help until my eyes fell unto Mori's. He nodded curtly and came over to ruffle Honey's blonde hair. I noticed the discrete look he gave me. But it disappeared the next moment, so I was not sure if he really did look at me.

"It's Layla, Mitsukuni. Stop crying," Mori said, his voice was warm.

"I know. It's just that... I'm SO HAPPY!" Honey buried his face in the crook of my neck, crying even louder.

I could not help the slight smile that came to my face. I hugged him tighter to reassure him that I was here. But I felt a tinge of guilt when he returned the hug with an even tighter hug. I did not know where that guilt came from.

I looked over Honey's head at Mori. Our eyes met and I could see the distress in them. In my memory, I could tell that this was not the first time I had seen it before. What was wrong? I asked him with my eyes. He answered by breaking our eye contact.

"Did you forget about us, angel cakes?" Hikaru smirked close by.

Kaoru was standing beside him, slinging an arm around Hikaru's shoulders. They were still treating me normally.

"Layla," Kyoya nodded slightly from his place, grabbing the collar of an enthusiastic Tamaki.

"LAYLA, MY DAUGHTER! YOU'RE OK! THAT RUBY PERSON ISN'T HERE, YES? IT IS YOU?" Tamaki frailed his arms, reaching out to me which I pointedly ignored.

"She's so cold," Tamaki sulked, "It's definitely Layla. Or, Sapphire as that Ruby character called her."

I spun to stare at him.

"How much did she tell you?"

"N-nothing! She told us nothing at all," Tamaki averted his eyes, backing away slowly.

Perplexed by his reaction, I eased back. If Ruby did not tell them anything, then. Princess? I silently watched her standing beside the owner of the bed and breakfast. No way, what was I thinking? Princess would never.

The familiar ding of the front door resounded in the bed and breakfast. Oh, a customer.

"Delivery,"

I turned around slowly. _He_ was here.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

All of us glanced to the door when we saw Layla turn. The guy that stepped in was the delivery guy. In his hand was a huge watermelon. Oh, score! Hikaru and I loved eating watermelons.

Haruhi walked up to the guy, smiling widely. She looked like she recognized him. And he, her.

"Arai, long time no see!" Haruhi greeted him warmly with a grin that touched her eyes.

Haruhi definitely knew Arai. Why did it feel weird to meet someone from Haruhi and Layla's past? I took a look at Tamaki to see his reaction towards the friendly greeting Haruhi gave Arai. As I expected, Tamaki was tearing up in annoyance, biting his poor handkerchief.

"Haruhi, princess! I didn't think I'd be seeing you here," The Arai fellow replied, a blush tinted his cheeks as he ruffled his hair in embarassment.

Hey, he was not in love with Haruhi, right? Calling her princess in a stoic manner, like that. Looks like Tamaki had a rival. But I thought Tamaki's mind was already a hurdle for him. He really was hopeless.

"Arai..." I heard Layla whisper with venom.

It seemed that Layla was not too keen on seeing Arai. Compared to Haruhi's greeting, Layla's was as cold as ice. She was not that cold when greeting us yesterday. She must really dislike this guy.

"Sapphire," Arai walked over to Layla, gave her a slight bow and gently touched her cheek.

What?! What was that about? But the next moment, Layla twisted his wrist and had him crouched on the ground. She managed that even with her hands in cuffs! Remind me never to get on Layla's bad side. But still, Arai did not look in the least bit winded.

"Still fiesty, Sapphire," he commented with a chuckle.

"Freya, stop it! You're going to break his arm," Haruhi said from where she stood.

Haruhi had used the name she gave Layla when they first met. She told us yesterday. I guess having Arai here let out all the reservation from before. But why did they even change her name from the one Haruhi gave, Freya to Layla? Was it because Freya was not really a presentable name? But Layla was no better, to be honest. I thought Sapphire suited Layla the most. For some reason, I felt like there was something missing with their story. But I knew better than to pry.

"Ah, don't worry about it, Haru-hime. She would never break my arm. My legs, on the other hand, are a different matter entirely," Arai rolled his shoulders in a humdrum manner.

He had a look of reminiscence. Layla flinched at the mention of the implied broken legs. I had a feeling that Layla did break Arai's legs once.

"I really don't need your help, Arai," Layla said coldly to the now stoic Arai.

"Come here, Sapphire, the one I admire," Arai rhymed, pulling Layla a ways away from us and turned a corner.

I glance at my brother. He was clenching his fist tightly. I knew he saw Arai as a rival now. And to think, I thought Arai had eyes for Haruhi. Even I was getting a bit aggitated now.

After what felt like a lifetime (when in reality it was just a couple of minutes), Hikaru marched towards the corner where Layla and Arai went. But he came back a second later, completely red in the face. Layla, with her hair braided and Arai walked behind him, her arm was around Arai's shoulders and she gave him a peck on his cheek. Arai's face was just as scarlet but his had a grin on it as he ruffled his hair, embarassed.

My face went red, matching Hikaru's. And so were the others. Hikaru made his way back to my side. He would not even look up. But he did say this.

"Ruby's back. And now I know why Layla hates Arai so much. But I probably hate him even more than she does,"

I saw the glare in Hikaru's eyes. He was angry. I was angry too. Because the Layla we knew, did not know what Ruby does in her stead.

* * *

_"Layla has dissociative identity disorder or D.I.D for short," Haruhi said._

_"What's D.I.D?" Honey asked._

_"It's a multiple personality disorder caused by extreme trauma. With that said, Layla probably has a split personality that is the complete opposite of her. And normally, both personalities are oblivious to what the other personality is doing but that doesn't seem to be the case for Ruby," Kyoya filled us in._

_Haruhi simply nodded along to Kyoya's explanation._

_"But I don't know what she went through. She was already like that when we met," Haruhi added, looking troubled._

* * *

"Ruby, what happened to the handcuffs? I know I didn't give Arai the key," Haruhi asked the clingy Ruby.

Ruby glanced up at Haruhi, seemingly just realising that she was there. Ruby grinned from ear to ear. The biggest smile I had ever seen on Layla's face. Then, she proudly held up her free hands. At her wrists were what was left of the handcuffs.

"She broke free of them," Arai shrugged unapologetically, still red in the face.

Urgh, he was irritating, being so close to Layla. I would really like to punch him in the face right about now. But Arai was Ruby's boyfriend and Ruby was Layla's split personality. Though, I did not believe that rasional thinking was part of Hikaru's mind.

Hikaru's fist were cluntched tightly. He gritted his teeth and the aggravation was plain on his face. I held his arm to stop his angry trembling. He slowly calmed himself down. I knew how much Hikaru loved Layla. And I knew how much this situation was confusing him. He never had something he wanted to keep for himself, so he did not know how to cope. Hell, even I did not know what to make of this.

"I have to go for today, Ruby. Until tomorrow for our date, my sweet," Arai hugged Ruby and gave a peck on her forehead which pretty much made her melt on the spot.

Arai turned around to leave. He held the door open but suddenly turned to face us. It looked like he just thought of something. Arai hurriedly back to Haruhi and Ruby, and told them his 'briliant' idea.

"Wait, I just thought of a great idea. Why don't we go on a double date with Haru-hime and whoever she chooses?" Arai lightly put it.

"What?" Ruby's fantasy bubble popped.

"Oh no! I wouldn't want to intrude," Haruhi rejected quickly.

She did not even need to think twice about it. Ruby was glaring intensely at her, she could probably drill a hole into Haruhi's head. It was intense enough for even oblivious Haruhi to notice. I watched as our poor Haruhi laughed nervously.

"Come on, Haruhi, Ruby. Won't it be fun? Besides, it would put Sapphire's mind at rest," Arai slung his arms around Haruhi's and Ruby's shoulders.

Arai's reasoning was sound. He also had this awkward charm that could make anyone do anything he said. Reluctantly or willingly, it did not matter. He was weird. So, it was not a surprise that Haruhi agreed in the end.

"Ruby baby, Haru-hime," he called out to the both of them as he bowed slightly and finally left.

I guess 'princess' was his nickname for Haruhi Just like how any other name he called Ruby. I came to that conclusion because Haruhi seemed used to it. She even nodded at his brief goodbye. The moment Arai left, Ruby pounced on Haruhi.

"Princess! Since you're coming with, you have to help us!" Ruby yelled, shaking Haruhi.

Ruby gave Haruhi the same nickname? Well, it made sense, they did share the same past. Which just annoyed Hikaru and I even more. Urgh, what was with that?! I heard someone clear their throat. It was Kyoya and he was wearing one of his knowing smiles. Did he know something we did not?

"Ok, ok! Just stop shaking me!" Haruhi replied.

Ruby, hearing Haruhi's reply, smiled brightly. She quickly pulled Haruhi up and the next moment, ran up the stairs. Then, we had all heard a distinct slamming of a door.

"Uh, what just happened?" Tamaki asked dumbly.

"Lay-chan's split personality and Haruhi has a double date tomorrow with that Arai guy and someone Haruhi chooses. I don't like Arai. Something's weird about him," Honey said with a frown on his face.

Mori hummed in agreement. If they did not like Arai, then there was no reason to trust him. With a single look, we all agreed to spy on their date. Now was the question on who would go on the date with Haruhi. Knowing her, she would not ask any of us. Then, I thought of a bright idea.

"Hikaru, go ask Haruhi out," I bluntly told my brother.

"What are you talking about?" Hikaru's quick reply came with a red face in toll.

"HARUHI WILL NOT GO ON A DATE WITH HIKARU!" Tamaki yelled after being so quiet, "If anyone, she should go with her father, ME!"

"You completely missed the point, Tamaki," Kyoya commented, pushing his glasses to the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"Besides, you can't expect Tamaki to ask her out," I added for effect.

"Yeah, Tama-chan can't ask his _daughter_ on a date! That's just plain wrong!" Honey backed us up, even Mori shook his head in disagreement.

We beat off Tamaki's request but Hikaru was being too stubborn for his own good. If that was the case, then I had no other choice.

"Fine, I'll ask her if she'll go with Hikaru and I tomorrow," I shrugged in resignation.

* * *

Mori's POV

Our plan was in action the next day. We opted to trailing behind Ruby and Arai, and Hikaru and Haruhi. Kaoru's plan was sound. At the last minute, he faked ailment and made Hikaru go on the double date. Tamaki was not at all happy about that but it was already too late.

The rest of us wore everyday clothes as disguises to conceal our identity. For some reason, Mitsukuni chose to wear girl's clothing. It gave me a headache looking at him but as long as he was happy, I would not question it.

But they just went on a normal date. They had ice-cream. Walked around. Ate some food the street vendors sold. Cracked jokes here and there. Nothing out of place, really.

Just that... Hikaru did not seem like he enjoyed himself.

"Hey, let's part ways here. Ruby and I want to see the river over there. You guys can continue your date," Arai said after an awkward time with Hikaru's angry glare.

I could not really blame his reaction. I mean, Hikaru was glaring at him through the whole date. But it did not seem that Haruhi and Ruby noticed.

"Yeah, ok. Let's go, Hikaru. It looks like it's going to rain anyways," Haruhi quickly jump to his suggestion.

It seemed like she wanted to quickly head back to the bed and breakfast. Well, if they were finish with the date, there was no reason for us to stay here.

With that, we all headed back to the bed and breakfast. Hikaru could get her back without us around.

* * *

Arai's POV

We watched the ever flowing river. It was constantly changing but it always remained the same. Just like this moment. It did not feeling it had been a year since I last saw her face to face. But the feeling of missing a piece of myself always remained. Even now, when she was right in front of me.

"I really missed you, Ruby,"

Ruby looked at me. Smiling sadly at me, she reluctantly looked away. I brushed her braided hair until their tips. I could not help myself but to drop a small kiss at the ends of her soft black hair.

"Sapphire would be angry at you," she whispered, smilling a slight smile.

"But the person in front of me right now is my sweet Ruby," I grinned mischievously.

Ruby was worried about something. She was never this quiet before. Knowing her, she would have pounced on me by now.

"What's on your mind, monkey?"

Ruby playfully punched me on the shoulder. She hesitated for only a moment before she started to speak.

"This might be the last time we'll see each other,"

It felt like Ruby just dropped a bomb on me. It came conpletely without warning. I suddenly felt suffocated.

"Ruby, what are you talking about?" I asked in a strained voice.

"Fye-fye is close to finding Ayumi," Ruby said nonchalantly, " We can feel it. We're close."

"You're still holding on to the hopes in finding Ayumi? But it's been years! She's gone," I exploded without thinking.

"We're not hoping anymore. We know how to get her back now. Well, Fye-fye does," Ruby bellowed.

'Why are you listening to Sapphire anyway? She's not the dominant personality!" My mouth ran.

Ruby fell silent. She was not happy. I took a deep breath. I knew where this was going. I knew the consequences. And they knew them too.

"Are you guys sure you want to do this? What about you and Sapphire?" I asked desperately.

Ruby continued her silence for awhile. She needed a bit of time to sort out her thoughts. Either that, or she did not think I could handle the truth.

"What are you thinking, Ruby?" I coated her to talk, rubbing her shoulders.

"We want to get Ayumi back. She belongs here. And... When we get her back to where she belongs, we'll go. Fye-fye and us," Ruby replied bluntly.

"Do I really have to let you go?" I asked, darkness was creeping up on me.

Ruby was my light. Sapphire was my inspiration. Losing both of them so soon was just mind boggling. My future felt dark. But they were serious. And nothing I could say would change their minds.

"We're sorry, Arai baby," Ruby apologised before planting a kiss on me.

"You better be. You know I don't ever want to let you go,"

* * *

**And... That's it for 'Princess and Freya'!**

**I hope you guys are enjoying this story so far!**

**So, what did Arai mean when he said that Sapphire (Layla) wasn't the dominant personality?**

**If it means was he implied, then was Ruby the true dominant personality? Then why would she let Layla take the reins? Find out in the next chapters!**

**And yes, I gave Arai a somewhat different personality because I didn't feel like adding another OC.**

**Do drop a review and tell me what you think while you're at it, ok?**

**Reviews are the fuel to my writing mojo!**

**Thank you and love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	17. Unease and Comfort

**Hello, my dear readers! I'm so sorry for the sudden hiatus and all! But now I'm back with the next chapter! Thanks for sticking with me after all this time. So, I really hope you enjoy this one!**

**Disclaimer: OHSHC isn't mine!**

* * *

Layla's POV

I stared silently at the plain brown box in front of me. It was filled with ten years worth of letters. Ten years worth of memories. None that I had opened. They were not meant for me. But I was still determine to personally give these letters to Ayumi, no matter how long it took. I knew with every fibre of my being, we, Ruby and I, would find all of Ayumi. She will finally be able to wake up everyday with the ones who loved her most.

And then, Ruby and I could disappear from their lives. We were monsters anyway. Abominations. This 'disease' as they called it was more like a curse. Heck, we should not have be made in the first place.

I seriously could not wait for that time to finally come.

Even if it meant I had to leave Princess' side.

And... And _their_ side.

* * *

Mori's POV

Layla was so quiet. I wished I could read her thoughts. She had been like this for the past week. And it was disturbing, to say the least. Not that Layla being quiet was unusual. It was just that it was an uncomfortable silence for once. And because of this uncomfortable feeling, the air around the room felt stagnate. Like everyone was holding their breath, waiting for something.

Layla shifted restlessly in her seat on the windowsill, feeling our eyes on her. It was rude to stare, I knew that. All of us knew that. But I did not think that thought could stop any of us from doing just that.

Changing my sights to something else, I spotted Haruhi, Tamaki and Kyoya huddle up together. The sight of Haruhi's eyebrows stitched together was enough to tell me that she was worried about Layla just as much as I was.

Truth be told, it felt like Layla was trying to crawl back into her shell again. Being unreachable. My heart ached a little at the thought of her clouded over eyes and tight-lipped persona. She used to act like a robot. She had come too far to run back into that lifeless form.

I wanted my sweet but feisty girl back.

The girl who knew how to hold a sword with healthy bloodlust and elegance. The girl who smiled softly at the guys' weird antics but knew when they went too far. The girl who laughs with the voice of an angel. Whose temper was a short fuse no one wanted lite.

I wanted that girl back.

Just then, Layla stood up without a warning. She made her way with a hurried stride to where Haruhi, Kyoya and Tamaki stood. Even from this far, I could hear what was being said.

"Haruhi, I'll be leaving for now. I need a walk," Layla said with a hoarse voice, like she had not used it for a while.

It must have been since our visit to Karuizawa. It had been exactly one week since. The revelation of Layla's identity - Freya, her ailment -dissociative identity disorder and her other personality -Ruby. Even Ruby's boyfriend, Arai made an appearance! My head was spinning for days trying to wrap itself around everything afterwards.

"Wait, what? Why?" Haruhu asked, confused written on her face as she grabbed a hold on Layla's arm.

Layla easily shrugged Haruhi's grasp on her. It was shocking. Even Kyoya and Tamaki gaped in awe at Layla's behaviour. However, Layla cut them dead. She pursed her lips tightly and her eyes remained glaring at the floor. Not wasting any more time, Layla bowed to Haruhi and stalked out of the place.

"Layla," I muttered her name under my breath.

I felt my body more on its own accord towards her. But the dainty hand on mine stopped my advances. Looking to my left, the said hand belonged to Mitsukuni. His eyes were trained on Layla's retreating back until the doors slowly cut us off.

"Let her be, Taka-kun. She needs to cool off," Mitsukuni said below a whisper.

I heard him sighed. Mitsukuni was also worried about Layla. Maybe even more than I was, if that was possible. She had reverted to calling Mitsukuni 'Mitsukuni-senpai'. That showed just how much distance she was trying to create between her and everyone else. Mitsukuni cried the entire week because of it. He had developed eyebags from the constant tears.

I patted his head in sympathy.

"Urgh! I can't take it anymore! Why was sugarcakes acting like this?" Hikaru exploded in frustration.

"Yeah, everything was fine in Karuizawa," Kaoru added bitterly, probably remembering Arai's face.

"Layla-chan," Tamaki sorrowfully voiced her name.

"I miss Lay-chan," Mitsukuni mumbled sadly.

Haruhi, Kyoya and I remained silent about it. We were all thinking hard about the cause of her change in attitude.

It could have been due to Haruhi's brontophobia attack. Layla was not present at the time to calm Haruhi down because of Ruby's date. According to Layla, Ruby relentlessly held on to her consciousness. Denying Layla hers.

But that problem had been resolved. Hikaru took care of Haruhi that night. After being yelled at Tamaki who was the only other person that was aware of Haruhi's phobia through the phone, that is. Layla was constantly asked for forgiveness the entire day after.

"I know exactly what's bothering her," Haruhi spoke up after a moment.

Everybody's eyes were promptly trained on her. We were all a bit too eagered to understand Layla's problem. Maybe because we had missed her too much.

"It's her D.I.D. She's being overly cautious because everyone knows about it now," Haruhi voiced with a sigh, "She's alienating herself."

* * *

Layla's POV

I walked in the hallways, alone with my thoughts. Princess was with Kyoya, Tamaki and the others in the 3rd music room. Normally, I would not let Princess be anywhere near Tamaki without me close by. But I trusted Kyoya. He would keep Tamaki at bay for me.

Though, I might trust Kyoya but... Did he trust me anymore? My having disociative identity disorder was the one thing Kyoya never found out about and he unknowingly promised not to pry into. He had no clue it even existed in the first place. But now that he knew, what did he think about it? I wanted to ask not just him, but the others as well. What thoughts swam into their minds the moment they found out? As much as I wanted to know, I myself, could not look any of them in the eyes.

I was ashamed and worried. D.I.D was not a common ailment and worse of all, they did not know which personality I was - dominant or 'made'. They had tried treating me normally but I just could not help distancing myself from them.

This was exactly why I did not want to get close to people in the first place. I felt alienated even though they continued to act as they usual did towards me. And that was why they ended up making a void between us as well. I hated feeling this way. And I hated Ruby. But what could I do?

"Fujikawa-san," said a familiar voice behind me.

"Nekozawa-san," I greeted him with a slight bow which he returned gracefully.

We stared silently at each other. It was a comfortable silence. One I suddenly realised I longed for. Even though Nekozawa went back to his usual black wig and long dark robed persona, it just felt familiar somehow. It felt right. And my thoughts from a while ago receded.

After a few minutes, Nekozawa smiled. Not his normal grin that showed all of his sharp teeth but a soft smile. A gentle smile.

"Fujikawa-san, I would like to thank you once again with what you did for my beloved baby sister and I," he bowed deeply to me, along with his beelzenef.

I quickly returned the favour while saying, "I only did what I thought was right. I might have even overstepped some boundaries."

"Not at all!" he exclaimed a bit frantically, "Truth be told, I wanted to repay you. How about a word of advice? You should be more careful with those you keep near."

I felt my eyes widen in curiousity. Knowing Nekozawa, I should definitely heed his warning.

"And those who you're running from now, they care about you more than you could imagine. Trust them," he looked at me with a gentle smile that touched his eyes.

And then, I was confused. And he was too.

"Ah, I apologise! My advices seem to have contradicted each other," he scratched his head bashfully with his free hand.

I let out an unexpected chuckle. He was an interesting guy. Hearing my laugh though, only made him blush darker.

"Please don't laugh at me, Fujikawa-san," he lowered both his eyes and beelzenef shamefully to the ground.

"I'm so sorry!" I covered my mouth, too late.

"It's alright. But, due to my unhelpful advice, I would instead warn you of the near future. Things are going to change around you and that change is not a friendly one," he said without a pause and quickly left me there, his face still crimson.

"T-thank you, Nekozawa-san!" I yelled instinctively at his hastily retreating back.

Things were going to change. But what things? And how were they bad? I might need to beef up the security around Princess.

Out of the blue, I was forced out of my train of thought by a sensation of falling. And the next thing I knew, I was carried in someone's arms. And then I zoned out.

_I instantly flinched. I felt small. I was seven again. It was my birthday. I watched as my parents laid in a bloody mess on the floor. Their eyes had rolled back into their heads and their unmoving hands reached out blindly towards me._

_"No! Don't leave me!"_

_The figure that held me in his arms was clad in pure black. He... He was the one who murdered them. Then, he ran from my house. And I was forced to go with him._

_"Sapphire!" I heard a yell of my name in my voice but it was not me._

And I was back to the present. The person who held younger me firmly in his arms faded and was replaced by Hikaru's handsome face, merely inches away from mine. Hikaru briskly walked with me in toll. I instantly snapped out of my dream. Scowling, I was ready to yell in his stupid face. Just as I was about to protest the sudden manhandling, I noticed the expression plastered there. He was completely annoyed, yet he looked smugged. And it confused me.

Seconds ticked by as I mutely watched his eyebrow cocked in surprised at my unresisting state. He gaze down at me questioningly. Even so, I remained silent, not indulging his curiousity. Hikaru continued walking stoically with me in his arms. Still, while he faced forward, he tightened his hold on me ever so slightly.

What? Was he expecting me to push him to let go of me? Nevermind the look on his face? I was not that insensitive. Well, come to think of it, I used to be. But now I was getting even more distracted by things. Or, people. How weird. It was like I could trust hin with my life now. But he would never trust me again. That was what I thought.

And so, I stayed put. Letting him carry me off to the most obvious destination according to the way we were going. Back to the 3rd music room. I was painfully aware that Hikaru never uttered a single word through out the way. Neither had I but I was inticipating to hear his thoughts of Ruby and I. Even so, I remained quiet. More than not, fearing his answer. What a coward I had become.

Hikaru kicked down the door with much spite. Entering proudly with me still in his warm arms, I realised that we were now in front of the rest of the host club members.

I glanced at each of their faces in turn. Tamaki and Honey were both grinning from ear to ear. Kaoru and Princess looked relieved yet stunned. Probably due to the fact I was carried bridal style by Hikaru. Takashi had his usual soft expression. But the expression that played on Kyoya's features left me dumbfounded. He was tight-lipped and his eyebrows were visibly twitching.

Hikaru, also noticing the darken expression, held me even closer. He allowed a smirk to rise to his own face. How weird. That was when I realised that I actually felt comfortable in his arms. But seeing everyone's expression, I started to feel a tad bit bashful. I did not think it was wise to stay in those arms even if I wanted to.

Once Hikaru set me down, I found my eyes wandering to the ground as it habitually done in this past week. With a stoic expression, Hikaru fell in line with the other host club members. Kyoya gave him a quick slap on the back of his head. He winced noticably. What was that about?

Just standing in front of all of them reminded me that they knew about my problem. And with that reminder that haunted my whole week, I felt like digging a hole to bury myself in.

_Urgh... Would you stop your melodrama already?_ Ruby spoke after so long.

I instantly felt annoyed. Shut up, Ruby!

The slight scowl on my face did not go unseen.

"Way to go, Ruby!" Honey cheered, knowing full well that Ruby had coated that reaction from me.

None the less, it was shocking how natural he spoke her name. Making me avert my eyes. I felt the sudden uncomfortable warmness filled my cheeks. And I knew Princess and the guys were smiling at our exchange, making me squirm.

"Freya, look at us," Princess demanded.

As it was Princess' order, I reluctantly lifted my head and met her gaze. My eyes darted from face to face. I could not help it. I was right though, they were smiling. I bit my lip.

"Sweetheart, stop furrowing your eyebrows. It's not a good look on you," Hikaru called me out.

Hikaru.

Sweetheart? He was still giving me endearments? Even when he knew about my D.I.D.? My lips quivered under his gaze. But I remained silent.

"Layla, you know we're worried about you. That's because we care," Kaoru interjected.

Kaoru.

He noticably balled up his fists, stopping himself from walking towards me. He might have wanted to grace me with a hug. But barely stopped himself to let everyone else have a chance at telling me their fill.

"Yeah, Lay-chan! We all love you so much, so stop avoiding us, ok?" Honey added with an approving nod from Mori.

Mitsu. Taka.

My eyes began to quiver as well. Tears were undoubtly going to flow today. Whether I liked it or not.

"Hurry up and get back to us," Kyoya briefly said, pushing his glasses up, unsuccessfully hiding his grin.

Kyoya.

"We need you, Layla. Can't you see that?" Tamaki said, for once sounding like a man in charge.

Even Tamaki. What were they doing? Trying to make me cry? Nekozawa's voice played in my mind like a broken record. 'Those you're running away from, they care about you more than you could imagine. Trust them'.

"And we're here for you until the end, Freya," Princess grinned reassuringly.

"So... Just call us when you need us," They chorused, smiling warmly that it touched my cold heart.

I could no longer stop myself. I quickly ran into Princess welcoming arms. The tears flowed as I predicted once I felt everyone's warmth surrounding me, pulling me close. Darn it all, I was no longer the person I was at the start of this assignment. Hell, it was not even an assignment anymore! What on Earth did they do to me?

... How was I going to leave them now...?

* * *

Haruhi's POV

I was stunned to see the tears staining Freya's face as she tightly hugged me. Never in the eight years that I had known her did she ever cried. At least, not in front of me. I did not believe that even Arai had ever seen Ruby or Freya's tears either. Both of them had always been emotionally and physically strong. I did not think there was ever a reason for my Freya to shed tears.

Freya's sobs became louder as the guys joined in our hug. Normally, if anyone was that close to her, Tamaki at least, Freya would have kicked them to another country. But I guessed all her pent up emotions spilling for the first time needed the comfortable warmth. I softly brushed Freya's soft long black hair to add just a bit more so.

After what seemed like a moment, her sobs lessened and her breathing went back to a steady pace. Her arms that wrapped themselves around me loosen a bit of their death grip. Her head gently lolled to my shoulder and I knew Freya had finally fallen asleep. After restless sleep for the past week, I knew just how tired she was.

I lightly nudged the guys, trying not to wake Freya up. She would not get much of a good nap with our position, crouching on the floor like this. To my own frustration, they did not move an inch.

"Come on, guys. She's fallen asleep. Get off of my already," I whispered frustratedly as they continued to ignore my increasing nudges.

Finally, someone responded. Mori. He lifted his head slightly and peered at my distress with one eye opened. Realising how cramped I was under their weights, he hit each of them smartly on the back of their heads in turns. Well, most of them. He spared Honey and Kyoya. And from all the stories I heard, I would have agree with his choice.

Finally, the other guys scrambled off Freya and I, rubbing their heads in unison. But they were kind enough not to yell out. They probably knew Freya had dozed off a while ago. Maybe they too wanted to feel comforted. Or, just to simply be around her. After last week, I could not blame them. Either way, they were off of me now.

Mori silently carried Freya to the long couch and gently laid her down. I noticed him whispering something close to her ear. But she was asleep, she could not possibly hear what he had to say. Before he backed away from her, he gave her a small peck on her forehead. If I did not know Freya better, I would not have seen the soft smile that tugged its way to her sleeping face.

It somehow felt like a private moment. And I found myself averting my eyes. The burning feeling building in my cheeks did not go unnoticed by me. Ah, stupid! Why did you keep your eyes on them anyway? I sheepishly scolded myself. It was a private moment and I should not have seen it. Everyone else did not notice, so why did I?

* * *

**And that's it for this chapter! Yeah, everyone needed a breather after that.**

**Please review so I can see where the story needs improvements!**

**Until next time,**

**Love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	18. Ranka's Past

**Disclaimer: OHSHC isn't mine!**

* * *

Layla's POV

"... Yes, none at all," General spoke to the person on the other line.

I knew with familiarity that he was speaking to the king's head advisor. They were most likely talking about Princess and I. Yes, I was eavesdropping. Whatever they had to say about Princess was of my concern.

"What? Are you serious?" General raised his voice, dumbfounded.

"Well, yes. She is capable of doing that. She's definitely ready for a solo assignment..." General trailled off.

Maybe they were not talking about Princess...?

"He truly requested for me? Even when he knew that leaves his daughter's protection solo on Freya's shoulders?"

Hearing that, I slumped to the floor. I knew then that I had to show General my eagerness. I was sure I could protect Princess. Besides, she was surrounded by strong and caring friends. Both of us were.

"General!" I jumped out of my hiding place behind the door panel, "Please let me do it! I'm prepared!"

General looked on at me with narrowing eyes. Oh, opps. He must have known I was eavesdropping on him; he did not mind that. But he showed his dissaprovement with the fact that I disrupted his conversation.

"Freya," he insinuated my name in controlled annoyance.

A second later, I heard a haughty laugh come from the phone, a quick, "She can do it. We expect you to be here by tomorrow," and then Mr Advisor hung up.

How rude.

General put down the phone and stared at me intimidatingly. I timidly lowered my head, ready to get reprimanded. Great, I had an earful from Kyoya not two days ago and now I was going to get another from General. But what I received instead was a warm hand atop my head.

"Come, help me pack," General sighed as he left for his room, but not before ruffling my hair - an awkward gesture from General.

But I knew it was his way of saying that he was proud of me. I rushed to catch up with him, a happy grin plastered on my face.

* * *

Princess and I bid our farewell to General as he rode off in a taxi, heading towards the palace. Before he left, he had placed an envelop in my hands, for both Ruby and I. Curious of what it contained, I ushered Princess into the comfort of our home the moment General was out of our sights.

_'Hurry up and open it,'_ Ruby complained, showing off her impatience.

I glowered at her tone. Such impertinence. I wonder if prolonging in opening this letter would further irritate her? But soon, I myself caved and swiftly opened the neatly written words.

_To my two girls,_

_It seems that the two of you are mature enough to lead a solo assignment - no babysitters, nothing. As such, you are now mature enough to know my story in your past._

_Remember when I had told you that I only spared the two of you because you looked like my departed daughter? Truth be told, she was only a month old when she died. However, you two were an exact copy of my wife. The one I had lost because of my own careless mistake._

_It was just that I was extremely happy at the time. My wife and I had finally gotten out of our dirty line of work and our child had just turned a month old. We were laughing in the car, enjoying ourselves. Next thing I knew, the car skidded on the road and crashed. I had ran a redlight in my carelessness and rammed us into a loading truck._

_I woke up three weeks later in a hospital. My wife and baby girl had died on the spot while I survived. That was when a family took me in. They had known of my particular expertise and required my cooperation. As they had saved me, I felt it was my obligation to serve them. Their only son used to cling to me like a koala. Needless to say, I adored rest of them, not so much._

_I was with them for years. Doing my job without question. When I got back from my work, I watched their child grow. They were also a family that specialises in archery, much like yours. That child was incredibly sweet and one day, I caught him sighing over a photo of a young girl. She was about his age - six. It was you. I was surprised at the uncanning resemblance you had with my wife so I had asked him about you._

_He said you were an angel from the same taekwondo class he took. An unreachable angel with two guy bestfriends that would never let him near you. I knew he fell for you by his innocent yet longing tone. And a year from that day, I was given your assignment. The Tomoyuki's assasination, by his father._

_You saw everything. But I had not realised that until I had already completed my mission. I did not know that the people I had killed were your parents to begin with. I was given an address and an order to kill everyone present. Yet, I could not find the willpower to kill you, not with such familiar looking eyes staring back at me. I had already lost my wife and daughter, I was not about to lose you too. So, I took you in but, as fate would have it, you developed a trauma - D.I.D., no less. However, I did not care too much about it, for you were now my daughters._

_And I was going to protect you from anything and everyone. I got rid of that family; they gave me no choice. But I had to spare the boy. He was nowhere near us anyway. Stuck in a boarding school the minute he turned seven._

_I did not see him as a threat. Yes, I had killed his family. But he had hated them with a burning passion. Still, I cannot guarantee that he will not come for revenge. And so, I implore you. If ever you cross paths with a boy - a teenage boy named Tetsuya Hasegawa, be wary._

_And be careful._

_\- General Ryoji Fujikawa_

I held the letter tightly to my chest.

_'Oh, wow. He signed it with his real name,'_

That he did. Which meant that he was completely serious about this. So, that was why he never told me who his client that order my family's head was. He had already gotten rid of all of them. All except a boy named Tetsuya Hasegawa. It was perhaps a miracle that we never crossed paths. he would have probably recognised me in a matter of seconds while I had no memories of him.

_'Well, seems we have to be on our toes with this Tetsuya Hasegawa character,'_ Ruby had nicely put it.

We never met him before, I doubt he was much of a threat. So, I dismissed her words.

"Hey, what's that letter?" Princess came out of her room.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just a reminder from General," I said nonchalantly, stuffing the letter back into the now creased envelop.

"If you say so," Princess said with a shrug, leaving it at that.

* * *

Kyoya's POV

I hung up the phone.

With my head on the headrest of my office chair, I stared at the ceiling. I absentmindedly took a sip of my tea. Urgh, disgusting! I cringed at the favour. The conversation took longer than I originally thought. The tea was now lukewarm. I placed the teacup on the side of my table, no longer wanting to drink it.

Seems that Ranka would not be around to help Layla with Haruhi's safety anymore. He was already on his way back to the palace. No warning whatsoever. But this was Ranka. He was undoubtedly placing a whole lot of faith in Layla. And I, as well.

And I was not one to dissapoint. Both Layla and Haruhi will be in, not just my care, but the entire host club's. He could definitely count on us.

But all that energy. Wasted.

I sighed out loud. Having to watch them closely like that. Would it not be awkward? To keep watch over Haruhi's interactions, let alone Layla's.

To see Layla's grinning eyes when she messed with the guys. Her furrowed eyebrows when she was concerned about something. Her red tinted cheeks when she was embarassed. Her tight lips when I gave her a verbal scolding. Her not-so-sharp words when she fought with Hikaru because she was not used to it.

Hmm...

Maybe...

Maybe it was not a total waste of energy...

I thought as I tried to ignore the blistering heat in my cheeks.

* * *

**Sorry that this chapter was so short! But now you know Ranka's past!**

**Yes, I did completely change his but it was necessary!**

**I really hope you liked it!**

**Don't forget to review, my lovely readers!**

**Love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	19. Hurt

**Hi, my lovely readers! I know, this fanfic doesn't have a scheduled update time and I don't think it ever will. Sorry about that! But I am thankful for those who stuck with me thus far! Without further ado, on with the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: OHSHC isn't mine. If it were, it would have been a disaster.**

* * *

Layla's POV

I hated this. I hated this. I hated this. I hated this. Someone was going to get seriously injured if I had to spend another minute with these guys. Just looking at them soured my already foul mood.

"What's your favourite sweets, Ice Princess?"

"... Mochi,"

"What's your favourite drink, my princess?"

"... Jasmine tea,"

"What is your favourite food, your highness?"

"... Anything with potato in it,"

Their questions went on and on and on... I hated them. I did not want to speak to them. More, I did not want to talk about myself. My patience was wearing dangerously thin. I cupped my chin and put on a bored expression. It was better than letting them see my scowl.

"Princess Layla...," one of my guest, Aoi, started.

Really, they would not stop calling me that. No matter what I said or how I treated them, I was a princess in their eyes. And it made me uncomfortable, unlike when I was with the host club members - my friends. I smiled faintly at the thought of them, just a little ways from me. It had indeed soften a bit of my features thinking of them.

Remembering that my customers were still in front of me, my bored expression involuntarily returned. I could not help it really. It had become a reflexed reaction, much to my own dismay.

"I'm sorry but... Could you leave me for a bit?" I stared out the window and took a dainty sip of my tea.

"Yes, my queen! Your wish is my command! But, what's wrong? You seem to be very unsettled today," He said with a deep blush, fixing his round glasses.

Could they just leave without a word? That would probably be asking too much, knowing this bunch. I let a soft sigh escape my lips.

"I'm just a tad bit tired. Sorry for worrying you, dear sirs," I told them with a smile and quickly turned back to stare out my window.

"T-thank you, princess! We will let you be. See you tomorrow!" my guests lit up at seeing my smile, bowed and left me.

I sighed out loud. If they only knew where the real princess was, they would not want anything to do with me. This was too much work. Why was I submitted to this? I was here to protect the princess, not this baloney!

Suddenly, I heard light footsteps approach me. From the cold silence that followed, I knew it was Kyoya. Was I going to get another earful from him? And I thought he had lighten up as of late. Guess I was wrong.

"Kyoya," I acknowledged him without looking up.

"Freya," he said my name in a disapproving manner.

The fact he called me by 'Freya' and not Layla only proved that there was no one in earshot. Which also meant he could reprimand me as much as he wanted. Oh, the joy.

"Look at me, Freya,"

I reluctantly turned his way with a pout. Really, this was nothing new. He would always give me a few choice words after I sent my customers away. He did not like the fact that I cut my costumers paid visits short. As he said, they were entitled to their money's worth.

His expression was a mix of annoyance and calm anger. I heard the agitated tapping of his foot on the smooth floor, something I realised he only did when he was really pissed or worried, but mostly pissed. He narrowed his eyes when he saw my pout.

"Don't act cute with me, Freya," he crossed his arms in front of his chest and stared me down.

"Fine," I puffed my cheeks, knowing what was to come as I imitated his posture while sitting.

"Can't you last one day without chasing your guests off? Do you realised that this causes trouble for the rest of us? Do you think they would just go home? How many times must I repeat myself until it sticks onto your thick skull?" Kyoya stood there criticising me as I mentally dug a hole for myself.

I looked away undignified. Kyoya's eyes were as calm as the sea. He had no expression on. I hated his expressionless face when he chided me. It made him seem so distant. Unmovable. Unreachable. Cold. When I knew very well that he was none of that.

"It's bad enough that they occupy the room without you. Going anywhere and everywhere in this place as they please. Pretty much being a bother to the other hosts' customers - to MY customers. Didn't I tell you that your customers were YOUR responsibility? Are you trying to cut our club's profit in half? What's the use of having the place running if it's going to plummet to the ground?" He continued calmly.

I knew what I did was wrong but having to endure the time with people I did not care for was maddening. Especially when my real purpose here was simply to protect Princess. It was infuriating. Though, I remained true to the job given to me.

"... Would you please look at me when I'm talking to you?" Kyoya exasperated loudly.

I looked back at him with venomous eyes. He challenged my glare with one of his own. That was the Kyoya I knew. But I was not about to drop my gaze just because he was acting like himself. So, we stayed like that for a long while.

Though, after some time my eyes had gotten tired keeping up that malicious staring contest so I stuck my tongue at him. Seeing that, he sighed loudly and plopped his hand on my head defeated.

"You're being so childish, I don't even know what to do with you. Go take a break," He gave me a slight smile and quickly steeled his expression, shooing me away.

Before I could reply - hell, I would have even apologised to him, he had already turned and walked away from me. But the warmth on my head left by Kyoya's hand was still there. It rubbed a bit of his scolding from my memory. I felt a small smile tugging its way to my face.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

I watched as Kyoya left Layla's side and the small smile on Layla's face that she tried to hide. I wonder what happened.

"Layla!" I greeted her with a smile.

"Ah, Kaoru? Hey!" She snapped her head around to face me.

"What's up with Kyoya-senpai?" I pretended to act like I had not been paying attention to their recent exchange.

I watched as she puffed up her cheeks and looked away. Ah, he chided her again. It was like this every day. But Layla refused to learn her lesson. And Kyoya was not about to let up either.

"You did it again, didn't you?" I asked humorously, already knowing the answer.

Seeing the laughter in my eyes, Layla became angry. Her expression changed like the wind now. It felt really refreshing. I could not help but wanting to tease her.

"Hey! What are you laughing about?" she yelled, punching me on the shoulder.

"Ouch... Layla, you need to hold back on your punches. I think I'm going to get a bruise from this," I playfully rubbed my shoulder, frowning slightly.

She instantly paled. Next thing I knew, Layla was frantically rolling up my sleeve. She pinched and poked at my shoulder. I could practically hear her saying 'Please don't bruise. Please don't bruise. Please don't bruise' as though it was a mantra.

"W-wow, there! Layla, I'm fine! I was just kidding!" I grabbed a hold of both her wrists to stop her.

I knew she had heard me as her hurried movements creased. But she continued to look at me with worry. Layla lightly furrowing her eyebrows. My. God. She was too cute. What was I going to do with her?

"Are you sure?" she asked, uncertain.

"Of course, I'm sure. It hurt less than a mosquito bite," I assured her, rolling my eyes.

And her expression changed once again. Hahaha, she was angry now. Adorable.

"If that's so... Then, take this!" She hit me harder on my back, annoyance laced in her voice.

I felt my back arched as I involuntarily yelped in pain. Ouch, she really was not holding back this time around. But yes, I guessed I deserved it, playing that harmless prank on her.

She then stalked over to Honey, her face red with a mixture of anger and embarrassment. Honey's cheeks were stuffed with cake as his head whipped its way to look up at her. He looked just like an overstuffed bunny. How fitting for our adorable Honey-senpai.

"Whay-cwan!" Honey unsuccessfully tried to call out Layla's nickname.

* * *

Kyoya's POV

I calculated our profit this month. In recent months, the profit had skyrocket to new heights. Which was mostly due to Layla. She had opened up the possibility of new customers. Obviously, this was because Layla was in fact a girl and could remain so, unlike Haruhi.

My fingers stopped moving, thinking of our two girl members. I watched them with the corner of my eyes. Layla was sitting beside Honey, wiping the mess on his face clean as he grinned up at her with his sparkling orbs. At the same time, Haruhi was breaking Tamaki's heart with an 'I'm not your daughter' speech. Again. I wonder when he would finally give up on that nonsense. But this was Tamaki we were talking about.

I rested my chin on my fist, thinking about what Ranka had told me a couple of months ago.

_Ring… Ring… Ring…_

"_Hello?" I answered on the third ring._

"_Kyoya," a familiar voice called out._

"_Ranka-san," I said in surprise, "What do I owe this call?"_

_Even though Ranka had been texting me often enough to established a friendship between us, he had never really had any reason to call before. This was the first time he had done so, which gave me the impression that this was important._

"_Since you know of Princess' and Freya's situation, I would like to request a favour from you," he said simply._

"_Which is?"_

"_I will be absent for a time as the king requires my specific assistance. What I need is for someone to keep an eye on my two girls,"_

"_Isn't Layla a first class bodyguard, trained by you no less?"_

"_Yes, and she has proven herself in numerous occasions. Even so, I have a bad feeling about leaving. It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. But it is not my call to deny His Majesty's wishes,"_

"_It's not a bother to me. They are both practically attached to the hip with all of us," I replied nonchalantly._

"_Thank you," Ranka replied in relief, then added in a deadpanned voice, "Make sure Tamaki stays away from them,"_

"_You have my word," I chortled humorously._

That had been months ago. And it did not look as though he was returning any time soon. Everything had been calm but I could not shake my unease this couple of weeks. Was I getting paranoid? It was disturbing. I kept catching myself cautiously looking behind my back. Figuratively speaking, that is.

* * *

Layla's POV

Mori sat beside me. He was lost in thought from the looks of it. That, or he found the wall more interesting compared to the rest of us. A sudden mischievous spark came to my mind. While talking to Honey, I sneakily reached out and poked Mori's cheek. I quickly pulled my hand back, acting innocent. He confusingly turned his head towards me. His expression was priceless! That definitely caught his attention!

I continued my conversation with Honey, ignoring Mori's bewildered expression. Proud that I was the person that made him make that face. Suddenly, big hands tickled my sides. I let out an uncharacteristic squeal.

"Ah, stop! Mori-senpai!" I plead.

But he continued his onslaught of evil tickles.

"M-Mori, stop! Ahahaha! I yield! I yield!"

He ignored my pleas yet again.

"T-t-Taka-kun!" I whined with tears escaping my eyes.

That made him stop. His eyes were round like marbles but quickly changed. He was smiling.

"Sorry," he chuckled shyly, ruffling my hair.

"You are so mean!" I harrumphed, puffing my cheeks angrily.

I decided to ignore him for the rest of the day. I was not amused with his tickle attack. Turning my back on him, I continued to talk with Honey. But I knew he was still smiling from where he sat, covering his mouth with his hand. Urgh! It was so annoying! Even Honey was chortling! How embarrassing!

* * *

A shadow distracted me from my conversation with Honey. It was weird because there should not have been one. Not where it appeared. I ignored it as it was probably just my imagination. That was what I has thought until I saw it again.

"Lay-chan, did you hear me?" Honey snapped me out of my trance.

"Hmm…? Ah, I'm sorry. What was that, Mitsu-kun?" I blurted out in a high-pitched voice.

"Is there something wrong, Lay-chan?" Honey asked in earnest, creasing his eyebrows.

My eyes caught sight of Mori. He was still seating beside me, his eyes shut. So, that shadow could not be one of the host club members as everyone was accounted for. But was Mori sleeping? When did he fall asleep?

"No, it's nothing," I yet again dismissed it with a shrug.

Well, on the outside. But I kept glancing at the window that I had claimed as my own. Something was off. I spared a glance at Kyoya from across the room and noticed that he was lost in his on world. Something he rarely did. Maybe I could sneak out for a while and check out this shadow situation that definitely originated from the roof.

"Will you excuse me for a minute, Mitsu-kun? I need to go to the washroom," I smoothly lied.

I rarely succeed in doing so. I was quite incapable of lying smoothly. Either I would stutter, speak incoherently or fidget on the spot. It was not a skill set that was compulsory for me to have. But Ruby - she had that skill. She was a natural at it. In fact, she could lie her way to presidency.

"Hmm? Yeah, sure," Honey smiled – what I assumed - a bit dejectedly.

"I'll be back before you know it," I ruffled his soft yellow locks.

I stood up and quickly headed to the door. By the time it had shut behind me, Kyoya was still lost in his thoughts. Yes, I knew he was keeping a watchful eye on both Princess and I. Which was why I kept myself relatively safe in his hindsight.

However, he could not protect me when I was protecting Princess.

I took the stairs up to the roof. They were most certainly there. I knew they were. It was obvious that they planned to drop from the ceiling and ambush us. But I had gotten to them first.

I pulled out my dagger that was hidden under my skirt. Strangely, the closer I was to the door, the calmer I felt. I kicked down the door and grabbed the nearest person in an arm-lock, my dagger gingerly resting on his throat. That pretty much screamed my entrance.

"Care to stop and tell me what's going on?" I spoke up, assessing their reactions.

Depending on their behaviour, I could spare their lives. Or, I could kill them. Who was I kidding? We were all assassins. I knew I had to kill them eventually. So, when they took their fighting stance, I slit his throat.

There were six of them. Well, five of them left. They all wore face masks and dark clothing. By the time the body whose throat I slit fell to the ground, they had charged straight towards me.

Faking left, I dragged my dagger into the arm of the closes attacker. He groaned loudly and fell unceremoniously to the ground. His blood disgustingly painted the back of my shirt. He clenched his bleeding arm close to his body. I then took out my penknife hidden conveniently in my boot and threw it into the eye of the next person. He clenched his eye and rolled painfully on his side.

The other three were not so easily persuade into submission. They decided to work together. Two of them circled me slowly. Trying to get within my blind spots.

I cursed my peripheral vision.

They moved at the same time. I dodged the curved dagger coming from my right. I spun on my heel, tripping him along the way. He fell, unconscious. Probably hitting his head on the concrete floor. Too late, the guy to my left dug his short sword into my thigh. I winced, biting my lip through the sudden sting.

My blood stained my already torn skirt. Red pulled the floor around me. I dragged myself away from him. If only I could find an exit. However, the biggest among them had cut my exit. His eyes narrowed, challenging me. I threw a needle at his smug looking eyes. He blocked.

Suddenly, my vision hazed over.

Confused, I blinked rapidly. This type of wound should not cause dizziness so fast. Even if I was losing a lot of blood.

"Is it working already?" one of them asked mockingly.

Comprehension filled my mind as they casual approached me. Crouching in front of me, the small one tilted my head up. I could not see their faces clearly. There were black spots everywhere.

"You shouldn't have let us cut you with our weapons," he said smugly.

I weakly jerked my head out of his grasp. His hands on me felt dirty. Especially when he had a self-satisfied look on his face. I realised he had taken his mask off at some point. Not that it mattered much; I could not make out his features very well. My eyes wandered to my thigh wound. The huge gash was tinted in a sickly green. One word played itself into my mind.

Poison.

It was very strong poison at that. The sting of the wound crawled mercilessly up on me. It felt I was burning from the inside. It was too much. Too much. Everything faded into white.

* * *

Ruby's POV

"She's out cold," a male's voice chuckled.

"The poison is really potent," someone else said in an acknowledging tone.

We heard two metallic objects clutter to the ground close to us. Our eyes were shut which only meant that Sapphire had passed out at some point. Because we did not initiate it, something bad must have happened. We remained paralyzed on the ground. The people around us were being too nonchalant. How annoying. They were underestimating Sapphire and us.

"Let's continue with the mission. The princess is just beneath our feet,"

Of course they wanted the princess. They had no valuable information for us. We knew with practised observation that there were six of them but only two were conscious and one of the six was dead.

We gingerly picked up their discarded weapons while they were distracted with their discussion. We thrusted the blades deep into their guts. Blood sprayed everywhere around us, in front of us, even on us. The surprise in their eyes were delicious. We gleefully twisted both short swords, intensifying their beautifully pained expressions.

"Too bad for you, you won't get to see how 'potent' this poison really is," we chortled ruthlessly.

We let them fall. Their eyes rolled back into their heads and creased moving. We struggled to stand up huffing loudly. The thigh wound was pulsing and it was getting annoying. We wiped a bit of the blood from our face with a rag one of the attackers had on hand. As we headed closer to the edge of the roof, we slit the rest of the members' throats. Just in case.

We abruptly dropped down to the second floor and knocked the window to the 3rd music room. The disgusting blood remain stained on our skin. We heard the princess scream at the sight of us.

"FREYA!" she shouted.

"Wrong. It's us, Ruby. And we told you to call her 'Sapphire'. That's her true name," we corrected her.

We clumsily fell into the room, shocking everyone else in it to silence.

We had brought back one of their coated daggers with us and held it out towards Sapphire's many admirers.

"Tell us what's on this dagger," we curtly demanded, "And give us the antidote or whatever you call it."

Mr Specs warily took the dagger from us with covered hands.

Ah, it hurts. The weapon imbedded into our thigh was still present. Our energy was sipping out at an alarming rate. Even though, there was not much blood lost.

And we were gone.

* * *

Mori's POV

She swayed in her seat on the windowsill. Then, she frighteningly pitch forward with dulling eyes. I caught her unconscious body before it hit the ground below her.

"Layla! Layla!" I repeated over and over, shaking her unmoving body, though being mindful of her bleeding wound.

Kyoya was yelling on the phone. Never had I seen him so frantic. Even his free hand was fisted to his side, turning white.

"Just get it ready! Get everyone ready! I don't care!" he was scarier than dark Kyoya at this moment.

I doubt whoever it was on the other line would disobey his demanding tone. Everyone else who were present in the room were too stunned to do anything but stand around. I could not blame them. Even I, who was holding her close to my chest was powerless to do anything.

"Hurry!" Kyoya yelled to us a second later, running out the room.

I swiftly yet carefully lifted Layla up and hastily followed in his wake. The rest followed my tail.

A helicopter was waiting for us when we arrived.

"Get her in! Mori, you come with," Kyoya practically shoved me into the helicopter, "Everyone else meet us at my family's hospital!"

I quickly sat with Layla across my lap, my arms securing her. Kyoya fell into the seat across from me.

"Layla," I cooed her name, pushing back the stray hairs from her face as the helicopter lifted into the air.

Her forehead was slick with sweat and someone else's blood. I absentmindedly grabbed my necktie and gingerly wiped the mess from her pale face. Layla sat lifelessly in my arms. Her heartbeat was faint. Layla. I felt myself trembling. God, was I going to lose her? I could not lose her! I shakily planted a tender kiss on her forehead, praying she would wake up with that small touch.

Please wake up, Layla! Open those beautiful eyes of yours! Don't leave us! What were we – I – going to do without you?!

Layla!

* * *

**Urgh, I feel so mean for doing that. But really, it was suppose to happen.**

**Buuuut, anyhow, I hope you guys loved all the sweet, lovey- dovey moments I threw in there.**

**Did I do good? I hope I did.**

**Please read and review! Even though I know you had already read it!**

**Love always,**

**~StormAria~**


	20. Dying

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC!**

* * *

Kyoya's POV

I watched her still form laying on the bed. Her heartbeat was abnormally slow. If not for the few beeps that came now and then from the heart monitor, I would have thought she had actually left us for good. As scary to think as that was.

Honey held her limp hand tightly in his. The worry that etched itself on his face never left. I felt useless, leaning on the opposite wall from Freya's bed. The room was suffocating. I pulled down my necktie in a hurry, hoping to relieve the weird lump that made its way to my throat.

Everyone was here, just hovering around her, waiting for her to finally open her eyes. It was nerve-wracking. And it was ridiculous. We were all so afraid, afraid that if we took our eyes off her for just a second, she would die.

"Master Ootori," a man in his late-forties called for me after a polite knock on the door.

He was one of our seasoned doctors in the hospital. If I remembered correctly, he was under toxicology. He and almost all the toxicologist in this place were concocting an antivenin for the poison coursing through Freya's veins.

I stepped out of the room to talk with the doctor, as to not distract the others.

"I hope you have good news for me, Doctor Kobayashi," I said tight-lipped.

I did not want to stay too long away from Freya. Especially when she was like this. What if her condition worsen while I was gone? I was worried and paranoid. I was just outside her room for goodness' sake, not at the other end of the continent! I mentally slapped myself as I schooled my expressions into my usual stoic face. It was a difficult task, to say the least._ She_ made it difficult. I did not believe that if it was anyone other than her laying on that bed, I would have reacted the same.

"I'm deeply sorry, Master Ootori. We had spent five hours creating the antivenin using the poison that you had provided. However, all of our test subjects perished within the hours – not having made any antibodies to counteract the poison," he told me matter-a-factly while staring dejectedly at his feet.

I felt all my hope crumble down. But I knew nothing would change if I were to breakdown now. Ignoring the slight trembling of my hands, I knew I had to ask the most obvious question.

"You said they died. But what about Layla? She has been like that for the past six hours with a concentrated dose floating in her system. How is she still alive?"

Not that I wanted her dead. Far from that, actually. But it puzzled me to no end. She had the concentrated dosage. And a lot of it – unlike the test subjects which were giving not even a drop of a diluted form. How was she still breathing then?

"It seems she had trained herself to lower her heartrate if she was ever giving deadly toxins. The toxins in the compound had properties that should have dilute the blood and quicken the heartbeat. Both properties with the intent of killing the host as quickly as possible. But with whatever she had underwent with her training, it seems to be keeping her alive," he informed.

He body was unconsciously buying us more time. But how long did we have? It seemed like a stretched to think it was very long at all. She was poisoned, for goodness' sake!

As if he read my mind, he added, "If she remains like this, she has four to five days at most before her body completely shuts down."

"And if she doesn't?" I felt complied to ask.

"In the event that she wakes up – and panics, probably 48 hours if we are lucky. But I won't lie, it's very unlikely," he paused for moment before continuing, his voice was heavy, "Master Ootori, you might want to think about putting her into an induced coma."

"An induced coma?" I found myself chuckling at the very notion, thinking about her usual pig-headedness, "No, she's too stubborn to allow herself into an induced coma - no matter how painful her injuries are. And she won't panic like you presume."

"But Master Ootori-," the doctor started to object which was cut off from a sound from inside Freya's room.

"S-She's up! Kyoya, she's up!" a frantic Tamaki burst out the room.

I pushed his face out of my way and entered the room as I watched her eyes fluttering. Her dark brown eyes. Eyes that I had not realised I missed seeing.

* * *

Layla's POV

My consciousness came back to me some time later. I did not know what time it was. I wanted to move. But when I tried to, I could not; my body felt as heavy as lead. Try as I did, I did not budge.

My surrounding was veiny red, like the inside of eyelids. I think I was alone. Where was Princess? Where was everybody? My hearing felt blocked and my eyes remained closed. I could not move. I could not find the right muscles to do such simple acts, like opening my eyes. How pathetic. How was I supposed to protect Princess if I could not even open my eyes?

I simply could not move. I felt so frustrated with myself. Why, or more like, how did this happen? Then suddenly, like a saving grace, I felt a warmth engulf my hands. Ah! There they were. I timidly moved my fingers.

I felt the warmth in my hands flinched. Probably not expecting me to move. They were soft and rough at the same time. Were they hands? Whose hands were these?

"S-she's up! Kyoya, she's up!"

Tamaki?

"Freya-cha - Ah, wait. Lay-chan? Are you back?" a childish voice called out to me.

Mitsu-kun? Did he just call me Freya?

"She should be. Her eyes are fluttering,"

Kyoya...?

"Come on, sugarplum. Stop toying with us and open those beautiful eyes of yours," said an irritated person to my right as the pressure on my hands increased, just a fraction, like they were being squeezed.

Hikaru...

Someone nudged my foot softly.

Haha that could only be Taka-kun.

"Come on, Layla," Said an encouraging voice somewhere in front of me.

Kaoru...

I felt a soft hand touch my cheek and a whisper followed.

"Freya, please open your eyes. I'll stop defying you. Just open your eyes," the whisperer sounded desperate.

Princess!

I slowly fluttered my eyes opened. The blinding light right above me robbed me of my sight for a couple of seconds before I could fully adjust. But I already knew the people who were with me.

"Where... am I?" I asked in general as they gave each other worried glances.

My voice was hoarse. Like it had not been used in a while. I could not have been out that long, right? It should have been just couple of hours at most. Right?

"What's wrong?" I turned to Princess.

For some reason it was hard to move my head. Suddenly, I felt the unlikely tremble of my body. I looked at my hands in fascination. I felt... tired.

"What is this? Why do I feel so drained?" I asked with a weak voice, "Stop staring at me like that!"

They were all staring at me with worry and... Was that pity? What was with those looks?! They were pissing me off! Before I could open my mouth to protest however, Kyoya sighed loudly and started to speak.

"I think it would be best if you heard it from the doctor, as does everyone else. I'll go get him, he should still be standing outside where I unceremoniously left him with you sudden awakening," he said as he rose his hands up in mock defeat, turned his back and went out of the hospital room.

Everyone followed his movements until he disappeared behind the door. And then, their attention was again trained on me. It made me squirm under their gaze. It was like that day all over again. I stared at my bed sheet as a way to distract myself from their piercing gaze. I wished they would just look somewhere else. It felt weird. Uncomfortable. Annoying. And definitely getting on my last nerves.

A second later, Kyoya was back with a doctor in tow. The doctor came closer to me as I watched Kyoya leaned on the wall opposite to my bed as if he had no care in the world.

"Miss Layla, I am Doctor Kobayashi...," the kind middle aged doctor started to speak

* * *

Worried faces loomed in front of me. I felt increasingly uncomfortable. So, according to Doctor Kobayashi, the poison that was freely coursing through my veins was slowly destroying my cells and shutting down my organs. I was told not to panic, least the poison travels faster with the added adrenaline. But I found that increasingly difficult to do with everyone staring at me.

The concern on everyone's face made me agitated but I could not tell them to leave. Not when they insisted on staying. Really, when it came down to it, I only needed an 'adult' to look after me. So why did they insist on overcrowding my hospital room?

I bit my lips, not knowing what to say to them with their intense focus on me. I glanced at my side table and spotted my phone. That reminded me that I had to tell the cleaning crew to get rid of the bodies Ruby had, no doubt, forgotten to call them about. That, and I needed to call for backup since I was pretty much stuck here. As long as Princess was near our group, I knew she would be fine but she still needed rest away from me. Her frown would become permanent if she kept it up any longer.

I reached out for my phone and suddenly everyone moved. Honey and Mori both jumped out of their seats in protest with my movements. Hikaru and Kaoru were already scolding me with passion, fire, whatever you called it. Tamaki and Princess both grabbed a hold of my left arm, the one closest to them. Their hands overlapped each other and I saw the faint blush on both their cheeks. Did I need to chide Princess about this?

But most surprising was Kyoya.

He had stood as far away from me as he physically could but still remained in the room. He had one of his stoic expressions on ever since I woke but I knew from the slight twitch of his eyebrows, he was not enjoying this just as much as I was. Whatever 'this' was.

Still, the moment he saw me move, he practically sprinted across the room and snatched my phone from my reach.

"No needless moving, Freya," he calmly reprimanded me.

I sunk back into my plush pillows, frowning at their reaction. Was I not allowed to do anything?

"I need to call someone for Princess," I harrumphed, glaring at Kyoya's long, thin fingers gripping my phone.

"… PRINCESS? Who? Haruhi's a princess?" Tamaki exploded the next moment.

Crap, I slipped up. Stupid Kyoya, distracting me by calling me with that name. Lapsing me into the false thought of us being alone when we were obviously not. Urgh, life just got ten times harder. I groan in annoyance as Princess explained everything to the guys. Who she was. Who I was. How we ended up at Ouran. Everything. Well, everything she knew, that was. There really was no way to cover any of this up anymore.

I watched as the shock made itself prominent unto their faces. All, except Kyoya's who knew all of this from the start. Slowly, their stunned faces turned to hurt, worry, betrayal and oddly enough, at the end at least, acceptance. I was sure they would be angry at us for not disclosing any of this to them.

I stared wide eyed at my blanket, feeling an involuntary tug of unease making its way to my heart. I squirmed under their piercing gaze and felt the distinct stinging behind my eyes – a feeling I found myself getting used to. The gazes that were the most piercing were Hikaru's and Kaoru's. We must have really hurt them with this. All I could do now was figuratively burn holes into my own palm, trying to not cry like the big baby that I had now became. Without any warning, Mori pulled me into his arms, my right shoulder pressing into his chest as he gently stroke my hair. He was so warm that it almost hurt. I did not understand this feeling.

He murmured into my ear, something only for my ears and my ears only. I felt the stinging in my eyes worsen. Before he pulled away, Mori pressed a light kiss onto my hair. That was when I grabbed his arm, encasing it and Honey (who had at some point in our conversation, joined me on my bed) in my embrace. Never had I known what it was like to be so unconditionally loved and forgiven. I felt like I was missing a severe punishment from General somewhere. Blame it on my upbringing, whatever. But at the moment, it was impossible to stop my waterworks.

* * *

I had called General Fujikawa informing him of our current situation. As such, he had sent us back up and get the cleaning crew to do away with the 'mess' for hours ago. I scrunched up my nose just thinking about the unpleasant scene. Not to mention the putrid smell that was sure to be emitted from the corpses, being the hot day it was. However, when I thought of 'back up', I did not expect _him. _Not even in my wildest dream! I could literally feel my rage boiling and with my condition, that was never a good thing.

"What on Earth are you doing here, Arai? Weren't you on a special mission in Australia?" I hissed with a tensed jaw.

"Sapphire!" he yelled, ignoring my initial question and charged into me like a freaking wreaking ball.

I pushed his annoying, shit eating face as far away from me as my arms would allow. I could feel the tick above my right eyebrow pulse in ire as the slow building headache that I was positive came with Arai's presence disrupted my strained concentration to not yell out in pain. Yes, I was in constant pain and it was getting worse. I knew the wound beneath the bandages was still bleeding – an effect from the unknown poison.

"Sapphire!" he whined, his irksome tone infiltrated my hearing which made me pinch his flapping lips between my fingers, willing to do anything to shut him up by this point.

"Shut it," I snapped at him.

"What are you doing here, Arai-san?" Princess asked without all my pent up anger behind her words.

"Mhhmhmmmhmmhhh!" he stupidly tried to talk, pissing me off even more.

"Buttercup, how is he supposed to speak when you're grabbing his lips like that?" came the rhetorical question from Hikaru's unusually silent mouth, "I'd rather you let him go now, before I decide to imprint my fist into his face."

I hastily let go of Arai, shoving the irritating fly as hard as I could. A loud thud came from his direction which I barely registered. My face unfortunately felt unbearably hot with Hikaru's careless threat.

Interestingly, my heartrate rose fast with my embarrassment and Ruby's excitement that Arai was here, not to mention her anger at the pain I inflicted on him. That made me realise something. Something important. So important that I could not hear what everyone was saying to me. But I was sure it was along the lines of 'Calm down! Your heartbeat is too fast!'

"Our heartbeats… It only raises when both Ruby and I are anything but calm," I revealed as the galling beeps from the heart monitor began to even out to a slower, steadier rhythm.

Everyone gaped at my statement. Seeing their collective reaction, I shrugged nonchalantly as though I had not just dropped a verbal bomb on them.

"So, why are you here, Arai?" I dismissed the situation.

"I-I-I'm here for Princess as you're sort of out of commission at the moment," Arai conceded, returning a heavy frown on my face, "And I've been back for months, to answer your other question. My charge said I had more pressing matter to attend to in Japan."

I glowed at my useless bandaged thigh. It was all my fault that I had gotten hurt. Even Ruby would not stop yelling at me ever since we awoke.

"Go already. Princess is tired," I huffed, avoiding eye contact with Princess who was sporting a frown, no doubt.

"Wait!" came a voice I was not expecting to butt in, "I'm coming with!"

I lifted my eyes to meet Tamaki's unusually steady gaze. Before I could start complaining, Arai readily agreed with his company. Oddly, I realised those two idiots were very alike. Too much alike. But I trusted Arai's skills even though he constantly gave me a migraine just like Tamaki. I pinched the bridged of my nose, trying to relieve my building headache. Arai and Tamaki really were the banes of my existence.

Sighing loudly, I could no longer find the will to fight them. I tiredly shooed Arai, Tamaki and Princess away. Feeling suddenly exhausted, I allowed my eyelids to slide shut as I leaned back into my pillows. Soothing fingers made their way to the sides of my temple, massaging the pain away. I sighed in contentment.

"I love you," I mindlessly mumbled under my breath to the owner of those magic fingers before willingly drifting off to dreamland.

Unbeknownst to me, the owner of said fingers and everyone else in the room were sporting a deep blush each and they were looked anywhere but at me for the next half hour.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! Till next time!**

**Do review if you find something wrong with the chapter to help me with my writing!**

**And tell me what you think!**

**Love,**

**~StormAria~**


	21. You!

**Disclaimer: I own not OHSHC**

* * *

Layla's POV

I groaned, reluctantly opening my eyes. A screeching disturbance outside my private hospital room unceremoniously woke me up. I was surprised to see that the obnoxious sound failed to wake my fast asleep 'bodyguards' up. I would have thought Mori would have at least stirred in his sleep but nothing. Thought it was quite understandable, I guess. It was obscenely early in the morning. And, besides, they had not slept much in the past 24 hours with school in the way and my getting poisoned. Growing teenagers needed their sleep. Though, they had nothing to worry about because I knew whoever it was, was not a threat with how loud they were on the other side of the door.

I watched as the knob on the door slowly turned, revealing the said person. It was Arai, of course. A scowl plastered itself onto my face as he slowly made his way to my bed. He was smiling with his palms facing me in a surrender pose as he glance around the room looking at the practically passed out guys.

Arai gave a low whistle as he whispered to me, "Well, I didn't think you'd get so many admirers, Saphie. Though it's hardly a wonder why."

"What on earth are you doing here, you idiot? Don't tell me you left Princess at home!" I whispered back, none too kindly, ignoring his false statement.

He shrugged his shoulders dismissively as he carefully sat on the edge of my bed. The bed suddenly felt very crowded with Honey sleeping on my other side. I had half a mind to kick Arai off it. That was until I felt Honey snuggle closer to my side. Arai had narrowed his eyes at the movement but the next second, he was all smiles. I probably just imagined it. I started to imagine a lot of things for the past three hours of drifting in and out of sleep. Waking up mostly because of the pain in my thigh. I might even be hallucinating right now for all I knew.

"Hey, I'm a genius, ok? I did get a PhD in Toxicology at fourteen on a part time course. Or, did you forget, Missy? And don't worry, Princess is with the rest of my team. She's fine. Heck, she's even with that overprotective Tamaki dude," Arai proudly stated before he seemed to remember something, "Hey, is he a bit, you know, crazy? I mean, I heard him call the princess his daughter or something."

"You could say that again," I mumbled, remembering the first time Tamaki called Princess his daughter and how badly I reacted to it.

I had pulled out my concealed dagger at the time and was about to threaten his life. That was until Princess involuntarily stopped me by calling out the name she gave me, Freya. Though, that was also around the time Kyoya had started suspecting us.

For some reason, I found myself chuckling at the memory. Hearing the soft chuckle from me, Arai sent a questioning look my way before smiling. He had not heard Ruby's chuckle, or mine for the matter, in a long time. This not-so-crazy side of Arai was just bearable, to say the least. I only hated him when he was being all clingy and lovey-dovey towards Ruby. I wanted to gag in those un-favour some situations.

"So, what are you doing here?" I continued to whisper, trying to be civil with Arai for once.

Arai grinned at my choice of tone and quickly rummaged his pockets, searching for something. He pulled out a new unused syringe (probably grabbed it from the supply cabinets) and a small medicine bottle, shaking the two slightly. He passed me the medicine bottle and I read the label that was written in Arai's messy doctor's writing.

"No… No way," I found myself gasping, practically seating up as I stared at him in amazement, "You… You made an antivenin?! How did you make one when all the other doctors in this hospital couldn't?"

Honey stirred at my sudden movement. I absentmindedly played with his hair while staring in awe at Arai. He really made an antivenin! My mind made a small note at Honey's contented sigh.

"That's because, my sweet Fye-fye, I'm a genius who studied every type of venom out there in my free time while these small-minded doctors only studied a venom when there's an outbreak," he grinned in contentment at my surprise and then shrugged, "Besides, the venom you got was a complex mixture of an _oxyuranus microlepidotus_ and some strong greens that thins the blood. They wouldn't have likely heard of it."

"Though, I had to show them my card before they let me in the lab to make the darn thing AND the main doctor took even more time just to check if it worked. Dammit, I would have gotten to you earlier if not for that old baldy," I heard Arai's mumble ranting under his breath.

"Doctor Kobayashi is not an 'old baldy' and you have to start respecting your elders, mister!" I chided him as I glanced at the guys once again to see if any of them had awoken.

"You know, with how you normally behave, I keep forgetting that you're actually smart," I nodded to him, impressed after I had made sure that we had not disturbed any of the guys' sleep.

"Ouch, you wound me, Saphie," his mock hurt replied came, "So, you want it or not?"

Like he had to ask! I quickly passed him the antivenin. Thrusting my arm towards him, I waited for the slight sting that came with every shot. Arai chuckled at my antics but I really could not care less. I was going to get better and when I did, I could continue protecting Princess.

Did I trust Arai's team to keep her safe? Probably, Arai did train them himself. Was I contented in letting them continue protecting Princess? No way in hell! She was my responsibility and I was going to continue being her bodyguard. No one else had a say in it and if they did, I was going to wipe the floor with them!

"Now, Fye-fye, the antivenin does work immediately but you'll still feel weak from the effects of the original blend of the venom so you'll need to stay in bed for a few days. After that, we'll probably be forced to tie you to your bed so you'll heal properly because I know just how stubborn you truly are," Arai grinned from ear to ear, using his doctor's voice and softly reprimand me.

I scoffed at the notion. Yes, I was thick-headed sometimes, but I did not think I was as bad as how Arai made me out to be. Though he could try to bind me to my bed. The operative word being 'try'. I was suddenly hit with a splitting headache. Clenching my head, I glared up at Arai using my eyes to convey the meaning.

"And yes, that headache is normal. So, just give up and rest," he said nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders.

"Like you would know," I huffed defiantly, crossing my arms.

"For your information, I do," he replied, glaring at me.

It took me a while to get what he meant. But when I did, I was not really surprised. I tried to hide my smile but failed miserably.

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh all you want," he said rolling his eyes at me.

"Y-you got bitten by a snake in Australia!" my muffled laughter filled the room.

Arai joined me after a second. Surprisingly, the guys remained asleep at that. Not even one of them rustled. Seriously, I did not expect them to sleep like logs. Arai and I could be at loggerheads and they would still be sleeping through it. I wonder why we even bothered to whisper. Our giggles stopped however at Arai's ringtone. It was one of his favourite songs, unlike my ringtone – the standard ringing. I mean, how embarrassing would it be if it went off when you were addressing your team?

Arai answered the call, a slight blush painting his face, "What is it?"

He listened for a moment before shouting as low as he could, "What do you mean she's gone?"

I felt my eyes widen at the implications. Who else would he be talking about other than Princess? I watched worriedly as the colour on his face drained with every word the other person on the line said. Shortly after, he had a stern expression on his face.

"I see. I'll be there as soon as I can," he replied to the caller, getting up from his seat on the bed before he even hung up.

"Wait, Arai! What happened?" I almost jumped out of my bed, seeing his intent to get out of here.

He turned around with a sigh and made his way back to my side. His eyes wondered to the ground before a determined expression landed on his face. And he smiled.

"It's Princess. She's gone. Apparently she had a walk with that Tamaki character and two of the guys. She was taken and all three of them were beaten up," he informed me.

I had no words for what he told me. How could they let something like this happen? It was not like Arai's team to get beaten up like that. Then again, Tamaki was there with them so they had to protect him as well. Knowing Tamaki, he did not know when to back off so they could deal with the problem.

"But, I'll get her back. You better not worry your little head about it and get better, ok?" Arai pinched my shell-shocked face as gently as he could, smirked slightly and headed straight for the door.

I muttered a curse under my breath as the door slowly closed on its own.

* * *

I agitatedly drummed my fingers across my lap with a deep scowl adorned on my face. Annoyed at my inability to do anything. Wait. Was I really going to listen to what Arai requested? Hah, what a laugh! No way, Princess was my charge and look what happened when I left her in their hands? I was getting out of here and getting Princess back with my own power.

I scooted out of my bed, grabbed my pack and tiptoed to the build-in bathroom. Quickly changing into some spare clothing I stuffed in there months ago just in case anything were to happen, I glanced at the many unopened envelops. Sighing, I realised in my paranoia this last month, I had shoved Honey's letters to Ayumi into said bag. Dismissing the letters, I whispered a quick goodbye to the guys, snuck out the room of sleeping lions and walked casually out of the hospital.

Outside the hospital, my phone vibrated with a message. Absently opening the message, I was shocked to see the contents. A picture of Princess tied up to a chair, gagged and blinded greeted my eyes. My eyes glanced to the sender's name but I only saw the word 'unknown'. Shit, how did they get my number? What were these cowards playing at? I quickly scanned through the rest of the message and it said: Come alone and play with us. And an address stuck to it.

They… They were at the school.

* * *

I headed to our home/base. If anything, I needed my weapons. What I had did not suffice, especially when half of them was confiscated somewhere. I obviously could not have hid them when I was unconscious. Damn, those were my favourite daggers.

It was dark. What the hell? Did Arai's team not use our base as their own? So, where were they? They could not have cleaned up and left, could they? They probably did. I mean, they were out to find the Princess. Should I tell Arai about the message? On one hand, Arai would not know Princess' location and would be searching blind. On the other hand, if I told him, he would just storm through the place and jeopardise Princess' safety.

"Argh! What was their game?" I exclaimed, frustrated as I flipped the switch.

Ignoring the mess his team made, I stomped my way to my room. Hopefully they did not touch anything in it. And as luck would have it, they invaded my privacy! Surprise, surprise. Those disgusting pigs.

Mumbling profanities to myself, I pulled the false floor and dragged out my hidden strongbox. I grabbed a few dozen needles, three daggers, two guns, ammunition and their silencers, and a short sword.

Changing once again into a more mobile outfit, I was ready for anything.

It took me a little over ten minutes to get to the school. The gates were ajar, leaving me access to roam into the place. I saw blood painting the guardhouse and just knew that there were at least two dead bodies lying there. Clenching the gun in my hand, I realised their game. They wanted to toy with me before getting rid of Princess. That had to be the only explanation. But why? Did they want Princess to suffer from loss before they make due with her? But that did not make much sense. She had already lost most of her family due to being the heir. So why? Whatever the reason, it could not be anything good.

I gritted my teeth and snuck my way into the main building. There were two men wearing all black at the main lobby. Both of them were adorned with double-barrelled shotguns. Definitely the wrong type of weapon as a first line defence. These shotguns could only shoot twice before being reloaded and the reload itself took time. In a shootout, every second counted and that was why I found myself standing before two bodies, both rocking side by side in pain. Not that I was saying that we were in a shootout. One of them had a walkie-talkie which I ultimately snatched from him.

I limped my way to the curved staircase, my injured thigh throbbing once in a while and carefully made my way up the stairs. If the photo message was an indication, Princess was on the roof. I should get there as fast as I could; it was freezing outside.

Up the first floor, there were gangs of men with weapons. Some were on patrol, others looked like they were stationed there. Each nodded to the other as they passed by. Taking a deep breath, I just knew I was not going to get out of this without a scratch. Sighing, I needed to get over it.

* * *

I held my bloody leg to limit the bleeding. Blood dripped down my face from my new head wound; one of the more enthusiastic men had clubbed my head. I could not see from my left eye and I felt the stinging from all of my slowly darkening bruises and knife marks up and down my arms and legs. My shirt and pants were soaked with blood, both mine and the men I had just painted red. And yet, I made it out of that mess. The school was definitely going to be closed until an investigation was carried out. That amount of blood would obviously call for that at least.

Panting heavily, I made my way up to the second floor. Just two more floors before I encounter the roof. Hopefully I would make it up there. That was when I thought I might actually have to call for help.

"Ruby? You there?" I called between gasps.

'_What's up, Fye-fye? Can't handle it?" _Ruby scoffed at me, probably angry at the fact that I had only just remembered her.

"Could you lend me your strength?" I asked in a no nonsense sort of tone.

Or, it would have been in a no nonsense kind of tone if I was not gasping for air every two seconds. Ruby was not amused. Neither was I, so to speak.

Huffing, she replied, "_Not like we have much of a choice. We do want to live, you know? But in order for that to happen, you have to be alive too, Fye-fye. And knowing how stubborn you are, we can't just walk away from here and leave the princess."_

"T-Thank you," I managed to say between clenched teeth.

With Ruby's help, we managed to get to the roof. Relatively unharmed. Well, aside from the injuries I sustained before seeking Ruby's assistance. I would have gotten away with less injuries if not for my inflated ego.

* * *

Kyoya's POV

I woke up none too happily but then again, when have I ever woken up happy? Never, that was when. I gazed around and realised I was the only one up. Funny. That usually never happens. Well, except when something was wrong. Was there?

I critically glanced around the room once more. That was when I finally noticed. I felt my heart fall to my stomach. Freya was not in her bed. Nor was she in the build-in washroom. Something was wrong. It was too darn early and there was no way she would up and leave without a reason. We needed to find her.

"Guys, wake up," my mood darken noticeably.

* * *

Layla's POV

Pushing the offending door that lend to the roof, I hurled myself through. Princess was exactly as she was in the photo if not more terrified. Who would not be with their eyes covered and a gag between their lips? She looked unharmed, to say the least. Tamaki who was five feet away from her, was out cold. His pretty boy's face was ruined with a black eye, slight swelling from bruises on his cheeks and split lips that were made more prominent with how pale he was. He must have fought like I had thought he would, the idiot. Guilt tugged at my heart seeing him wounded.

But what surprised me most was the person sitting comfortably in a throne-like chair, neglectfully holding a familiar long sword. No. No way. It could not be. I had only talked to this person not a few hours ago! Impossible! But my eyes – eye could not be lying to me.

"Y-y-you!" I managed to say.

"Hello, both of you," his cheery voice called back, a familiar smirk adorned on his disgusting face.

"... Arai,"

* * *

**Did you miss me? I guess not.**

**Well, well, well... The mystery guy has been revealed. Did anyone think it was going to be him?**

**Do tell me if any of you lovelies had a suspicion that it was going to be him.**

**It's midnight right now so, I'm sorry if this chapter is crappy. I haven't read through it yet so there might be some mistakes. Sorry about those!**

**Reviews are much welcome! As in, VERY much welcome.**

**Love,**

**~StormAria~**


	22. Remember?

**Disclaimer: I do not own OHSHC**

* * *

Layla's POV

"Arai,"

It felt like time had stopped. I felt my heart beat faster and faster. It was him. It was him all along! But why? Why him? Why now?

"Hello, Sapphire sweetie! Ah, you should keep that heart of yours under control. Wouldn't want you to die so early in the show," He said, giving me one of his flawless smirks.

I turned my head slightly and spotted Princess blinded with a black cloth sitting beside him. She has a look of pure terror. Seeing her mostly safe, I force myself to calm down. And the fact that Tamaki was unconscious and not dead from the way his chest moved up and down was just a blessing.

"Freya. Are you there? What are you doing here?!" she exclaimed, distressed written in her voice.

"To save you, of course," I said matter-a-factly between heavy pants.

My muscles were screaming at me. I did not think I would be able to move my left leg anymore after this but Princess was more important. I was ready to lose anything and everything I had, to make sure she was safe. Even if it meant I had to die. Which also meant I was breaking our promise, Ruby's and mine's, to Ayumi.

Suddenly, I realised how quiet my head was. Ruby? Where was Ruby? Maybe seeing Arai shocked her into slumber. And just when I needed her the most, she disappears. But I could not blame her. Her boyfriend turned out to be a traitor.

"Why are you here, Arai? Aren't you supposed to be protecting the Princess?!" I yelled in anger at his disgusting traitorous face.

"Don't tell me you still don't know, Sapphire? I mean, it should be obvious by now," He dramatically rolled his eyes, "Shouldn't your 'father' have told you a long time ago?"

"Told me what?" I asked him irritably.

Not like it really mattered what he had to say. I was in too much pain. I did not have the time for his foolish games. I needed him to get to the point before it was too late.

"Well, let's take a short blast to the past, shall we 'Ayumi-chan'?" his eyes glared daggers at me, revealing his true motives.

How did he know that name? I had never told him that name! The only people who knew were General and Ruby. General telling anyone something that important was impossible. Even if it was his favourite pupil. But, Ruby? No, Ruby could not possibly have told him about Ayumi. Who was Arai? This guy I knew since I came to the palace. My begrudging sparring buddy until I had to take on this mission to protect the princess. Who was he?

"Really, I didn't want to do this to you, Saphie. But you and Ruby forced my hand," Arai continued in regret.

His eyes told me how it physically pained him to do this to us. They looked sincere enough which just confused me even more. The throbbing in my head was no help either. My breathing was haggard. And I could not calm down. Why was he here?

"Why? Why did you both want to bring Ayumi back? She was already dead!" the anger burned in his eyes, all sorrow left his face, "Why did you have to bring the cause of my family's death, the betrayal of my father figure and the beginning of my all suffering back from the dead!"

Wait, what? I felt my breathing hitch. I did not understand a thing he was saying. Thinking made it hard to stand. Damned the loss of blood and after effects of the poison.

"Ranka Fujikawa was only supposed to murder the Tomoyuki's. Why on Earth did he spare Ayumi and killed the Hasegawa, _my_ family, as well?" Arai glared at me, or rather, at the image of Ayumi that burned with hatred at the back of his mind.

Hasegawa? Hasegawa. Hasegawa family. My disorientated brain was slow to process his words but that surname, I knew I had heard it once before. But where? Where on Earth did I hear that surname?

And that was when it hit me.

Oh. My. Goodness. Arai was Tetsuya Hasegawa. General's pseudo-ward. And the Hasegawa were the Tomoyuki's strongest rivals. Their rivalry in archery were second to none. No way, this was why he was doing this? Revenge? My eyes widen in realisation.

"But really, I didn't care that he killed off the family that took him in. What I cared about was the fact that he abandoned me to my distant relatives. My money-chasing distant relatives," he gave emphasis, "And for what? A little girl that stole his heart because she reminded him of his dead daughter by looks and personality alone, and ultimately left him behind with two completely different people? He was a fool!"

I remembered the night General spared us all too well. No, it was the night he spared Ayumi. She was too frighten to face him, traumatised by her family's death. She called to us, to me, as impossible as it might have been. And we were born. Two opposite personalities in one tiny body whereas Ayumi herself disappeared.

* * *

"_Sapphire!" a voice called out in fear._

_I opened my eyes for the very first time with a fiery colour surrounding everything I could see. Red, my not so empty mind offered. An unknown warmth engulfed my tiny figure. A figure that was unusual. How did you move this frail little thing? It was foreign. Suddenly, the acrid smell of metal assaulted my senses, making me scrunched up my nose. Well, I learned how to do that at least. And I knew that I did not like the smell._

'_That makes the two of us,' a voice inside my head interjected._

_A voice? Was whatever that was meant to be there? Whatever it was, was hurting my head._

'_The name's Ruby. Ayumi named us before she went to sleep. And you are Sapphire,'_

_The voice was annoying. I did not know why but I just knew that I hated her. She was like a mirror-verse of me. I hated how this voice inside of me was saying that, in a way, she was a different person from me. An annoying different person. I did not like it at all. If she was inside me, then she was me, right?_

'_Wow, we think that's being a bit hostile. Don't you think, big sister Sapphire?'_

_Do not talk to me like you know me, voice. If you are in me, then you are me. But if you are not me, then you are just a figment of my imagination. Do not bother me again._

'_Ouch, that's plain mean, Saphie'_

_Ignoring her, I moved the thing that was now my head. Glancing around, there were bodies on the floor bathed in the red colour. They were definitely dead. I looked up at the person who had me in their arms. He was so much bigger than I was and wearing black all over._

"_Who are they?" I asked the black cladded man I would know from now on as Ranka Fujikawa._

_His eyes widened in surprised, the only feature I could see of him, like he could not believe what he had heard. I stared back at him, undaunted by his obvious surprise._

_He whispered back at me, "Don't you know your own parents?"_

* * *

Arai, or should I have called him Tetsuya, walked slowly towards me, snapping me out of my flashback. He was gauging my expression, coming closer and closer. My cheeks blushed red. Oh no, Ruby was recovering from her shock.

"Oh, but of course, you didn't know the rest of it," Arai – no, Tetsuya said, he looked at me with pity.

I wanted to avert my gaze from him but Ruby was making it difficult. The Sun was slowly rising and to Ruby's eyes, Tetsuya looked like an angel. No, a god. But we were wasting time. Our blood was freely flowing from the earlier wounds and when the Sun was finally up, there was no time left for us. We would not have enough strength and Ruby herself was fighting me at this very moment.

She was starting to be a huge liability for our survival because I could feel that despite what he said and implied, she still loved _her _Arai. Tetsuya stood directly in front of our swaying figure, conflict was waging in his own eyes. I could see it. Tetsuya himself was fighting with his decision. The one in the way of his personal vendetta against Ayumi, was Ruby. He might have admire my strength, but he was completely smitten with her. So, that was not an act. I doubt any of it was an act until the recent happenings.

If only Ruby was not so strong, I could easily slit Tetsuya's throat right here, right now and end this charade once and for all. But she was strong. She was Ruby, of course, she was strong. And that made the difference between a dead Tetsuya and the one staring longingly at us.

Tetsuya lovingly caressed our hair once he got close enough to breath down our necks. This felt nothing like that time in the hospital room. _His _fingers did not confuse me in the least bit. No, eww. I wish Tetsuya did not touch us. But I also wished he would continue forever. It felt disgusting yet oh-so satisfying. No, Ruby and I was too in tuned with each other right now. I felt her love for Tetsuya coming in waves and in returned she felt my hatred for the traitor thunder down on her.

RUBY, THINK OF THE PRINCESS! WE SWORE TO PROTECT HER!

'_You did, Sapphire. You did. I, for one, chose Arai from the start'_

What about Ayumi, you selfish brat!

'_She's the reason my poor Arai baby is hurting. He's been hurting for years, Sapphire. Can't you see that? I know you understand exactly how I feel. Besides, you have your own love'_

We promised Ayumi, Ruby! We promised to get her back. Did that mean nothing to you? Do you not see that he will kill us undeniably?

'_What difference does it make? We'll die anyway. If it's for my Arai baby, I would do anything'_

Ruby's lovesickness was blinding her from any rational thinking. I did not know it have developed this much. Was Tetsuya banking on her dependence of him that much that he believed it was safe to touch us? How infuriating! But he was right anyhow.

"Ruby, my love. I think it's time to go to sleep, don't you think?" Tetsuya whispered into our ear and planted a soft kiss to our forehead, causing an involuntary shiver up our spine.

"Yes, my king," Ruby said, overpowering me for once as she shut herself down.

She was gone.

I fell to the cold hard ground from the sudden lost in connection. Ruby?

What had just happened? I stared up at Tetsuya, worried about Ruby as I watched a tear trailing down his traitorous face.

Ruby…?

* * *

Honey's POV

Where was Lay-chan?

Where was she? Where was she? Where was she? Where was she?

She was not in her bed. She was not in the bathroom. She was not near the nurses. She was not at the lobby. She could not have gone out of the hospital without telling us! Could she?

"Kyo-chan! Where's Lay-chan? She couldn't have left us, right?" I frantically asked Kyoya as we ran out the hospital and into a limousine just outside the hospital.

"I don't know. But I'm going to find out," Kyoya replied as he stared down at his hands in pure rage.

He was not happy with Layla that was for sure. And I could not blame him either. I was angry too. And worried. Everyone was. Layla was not well. She could be dying this very minute! I would not forgive her if she died!

"I can't get a hold of the Boss or Haruhi. What is going on?" Kaoru informed us as he hung up on the voice messaging application.

Now we had both Haruhi and Tamaki to worry about. What was this? For all of them not to be available at the same time was more than odd. It was impossible!

"Where are we headed to now?" Hikaru inquired, his voice was hard.

"Haruhi and Layla's place," Taka offered, staring out the tinted window, frowning deeply.

Kyoya simply nodded in agreement as he tapped agitately at the leather headrest. Kyoya was worried beyond belief. It was weird to see him like this but could we blame him? I hoped they were alright and that this sinking feeling was just me having an upset stomach.

* * *

It was empty.

Their house was empty from the looks of it. Where were they? I was starting to get increasingly annoyed. Layla, Tamaki and Haruhi could not have just disappeared! It did not make any sense. Besides were they not protected by that Arai guy and his team, like he told Layla yesterday? The state of their house seemed to say so too. So what gives?

I noticed something discarded not far from the door. What was that? I approached it and realised it was Layla's phone. It must have fallen out of her pocket when she left. Which also meant that she had come by here!

Kyoya rushed into Layla's room as we followed behind. There was a strongbox placed in the middle of the otherwise turned over room. What happened here? It was like a hurricane passed through it. Kyoya stoned in front of the strongbox and his face contoured into an even angrier scowl. I did not think it was possible to make him look any angrier.

"That idiot! What was she thinking?" He yelled heatedly.

I opened up Layla's forgotten phone and strolled through her messages for any clue. She would forgive me. Probably. If not, than I would just have to use my charms. But for that to work, we had to find her.

I did not expect to find this though.

"I know where they are," I said through clenched teeth as I showed the message I found on her history.

I just hoped we would make it in time. Please, let us make it in time!

* * *

**Sorry for the long hiatus! Really, I just couldn't write this chapter for some reason. Probably because I had 'Change My Mind' and 'Please Blindly Trust Me' (both Fairy Tail fanfics) on my mind.**

**Either way, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'm sorry that it didn't say much.**

**Please R&amp;R! Until next time!**

**With love,**

**~StormAria~**


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